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STATE  NORMAL  SCHOOL 

LOS  ANGELES.  CALli  Oiu>llA 


UNIVERSITY  of  CALIFORNa 

AT 

LOS  ANGELES 

LIBRARY 


FIRST  YEAR  ENGLISH 


FOR  HIGH  SCHOOLS 


BY 

KMOGENE  SANFORD  SIMONS,  A.B. 

Englisfi  Examiner  in  New  York  State  Departvient 
of  Educatiott 
'2  /9  ?  7 


SILVER.  BURDETT    AND    COMPANY 

NEW  YOKK         HOSTON         CHICAGO 


COPYKIGHT,    190G,   1911, 
BY 

SILVER,  BURDETT  AND  COMPANY 


PREFACE 

The  author  has  prepared  this  little  volume  with  the 
hope  that  it  may  aid  in  producing  more  satisfactory 
results  in  first  year  English  in  high  schools. 

The  subject  matter  follows  closely  the  outline  of  the 
New  York  State  Regents  syllabus,  and  is  designed  to  fur- 
nish material  for  all  the  work  required  outside  of  the  pre- 
scribed texts.  Certain  features  such  as  topical  outlines, 
character  sketches,  narration,  description,  etc.,  which  are 
on  the  whole  new  to  first  year  work,  have  been  made 
especially  prominent,  while  drill  in  punctuation,  letter 
writing,  and  sentence  analysis  has  not  been  neglected. 
The  book  is  not  intended  to  be  a  complete  treatise,  but 
includes  as  much  of  the  principles  of  composition  and 
of  grammatical  analysis  as  a  first  year  high  school 
student  is  expected  to  master. 

While  the  work  has  been  written  with  the  needs  of 
New  York  schools  immediately  in  view,  it  is  believed 
that  it  can  be  advantageously  used  for  first  year  work 
in  high  schools  throughout  the  country.  Where  the 
work  has  not  been  definitely  organized,  the  author  sug- 
gests that  the  appended  outline,  drawn  for  high  schools 
of  New  York  State,  be  adopted  in  whole  or  in  part. 

Regents  questions,  as  well  as  extracts  from  the  pre- 
scribed literature,  have  been  freely  used  for  exercises 
and  illustrations.  Indeed,  the  work  is  based  largely  on 
the  readings  of  the  course,  although  the  author  has  made 

3 


4  PREFACE 

no  attempt  to  supply  the  detailed  information  which 
belongs  to  editions  of  the  texts  themselves. 

In  regard  to  Chapter  I,  on  oral  composition,  it  may 
be  stated  that  it  was  not  the  intention  of  the  author  to 
give  an  exhaustive  summary  of  the  work  to  be  done 
along  this  line,  but  rather  to  suggest  the  kind  of  topics 
to  be  covered  and  the  methods  to  be  employed.  The 
teacher  should  always  bear  in  mind  that  no  pupil  can 
write  until  he  has  something  to  say,  a  fact  which  has 
been  kept  constantly  in  view  in  the  presentation  of  the 
constructive  work  contained  in  this  book. 

The  author  desires  to  acknowledge  her  indebted- 
ness to  certain  of  her  friends  whose  suggestions  and 
criticisms  have  been  invaluable. 

PREFACE   TO   THE   REVISED   EDITION 

The  original  edition  of  this  book  was  based  on 
the  1905  New  York  Regents  syllabus.  As  revised 
by  the  publishers  it  now  meets  fully  and  exactly 
the  requirements  of  the  1910  syllabus,  as  well  as 
the  uniform  college  entrance  requirements  in  English 
for  the  years  1913,  1914  and  1915. 


CONTENTS 

Craptkk  Paoe 

I.    Oral  Composition 9 

II.  Written  Composition 27 

III.  Review  of  Capitalization  and  Punctuation  63 

IV.  Letter  Writing         86 

V.  Sentences,  Clauses  and  Phrases 116 

VI.   Narration 134 

VII.  Description 169 

VIII.  Synonyms  and  Homonyms 204 


Outline  of  Work  in  English  for  the  First 
Year  of  High  School 

first  half 

Literature.  The  general  purpose  of  teaching  litera- 
ture in  the  first  year  is  to  arouse  an  interest  in  reading, 
to  teach  how  to  read,  and  to  develop,  through  reading, 
the  power  to  form  vivid  mental  pictures.  To  this  end 
books  should  be  selected,  first  of  all,  for  their  wholesome 
interest  to  boys  and  girls.  They  should  be  chosen 
also  with  a  view  to  nmltiply  the  student's  interests  and 
thus  to  prepare  him  to  read  other  books  to  advantage. 
Some,  for  example,  may  treat  of  chivalry,  some  of 
romance,  others  of  history,  and  still  others  of  the  classic 
myths  and  mediaeval  legends. 

Required  for  reading.  One  from  each  of  the  fol- 
lowing groups : 

I  Scott.     Ivanhoe. 

Quentin  Durward. 

Stevenson.     Treasure  Island. 
II  Coleridge  and   Lowell.    The   Ancient    Mariner 
and  the  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal. 
Poe,  Whittier  and  Longfellow.    The  Raven,  Snow- 
Bound,  and  the  Courtship  of  Miles  Standish. 
Arnold  and  Macaulay.      Sohrab  and  Rustum  and 
The  Lays  of  Ancient  Rome. 
Suggested   for    supplementary    reading.      Ballads; 
fables;  stories  from  the  Old  Testament;  interesting 
short  stories  such  as  those  of  Irving,  Hawthorne, 
R.  H.  Davis,  Kipling,  Thompson  Seton,  Joel  Chand- 
ler Harris,  Stockton  and  Stevenson;  narrative  poems 
by  Tennyson,  Whittier,  Brow^ning  and  others. 

G 


SYLLABUS    REQUIREMENTS  7 

Composition  and  rhetoric.  The  general  purpose 
of  teaching  composition  and  rhetoric  in  the  first 
year  is  to  secure  facility  in  expression,  with  some 
degree  of  accuracy.  To  this  end  students  should 
write  many  compositions.  While  the  criticism  of 
the  teacher  must  be  concerned  with  matters  of 
grammar,  spelling  and  punctuation,  it  should  be 
largely  such  as  will  encourage  constructive  effort. 

The  work  of  the  term  shall  be  as  follows: 

1  Letter  writing  with  attention  to  substance  as 
well  as  to  form. 

2  Short  themes,  both  oral  and  written,  based  for 
the  most  part  on  the  experience  of  the  student.  A 
fair  proportion  of  the  themes  should  be  narratives. 

3  A  review  of  capitalization  and  of  the  simpler 
principles  of  punctuation.  Elementary  study  of  the 
principles  of  unity  and  coherence  in  the  composition 
and  in  sentences. 

Grammar.  Analysis  of  easy  sentences.  Review, 
when  necessary,  of  inflection  of  nouns  and  pronouns; 
agreement  of  pronoun  with  antecedent  and  of  verb 
with  subject;  distinction  between  transitive  and  in- 
transitive verbs,  between  the  active  and  the  passive 
voice;  attention  to  the  most  common  errors  in  the 
student's  oral  and  written  composition. 

SECOND  HALF 

Literature.  Required  for  reading.  One  from  each 
of  the  following  groups: 

I   The  Odyssey  (in  an  English  translation  of  rec- 


8  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

ognized  literary  excellence)  with  the  omission,  if  de- 
sired, of  books  I,  II,  III,  IV,  V,  XV,  XVI,  XVII. 

The  Iliad  (in  an  English  translation  of  recognized 
literary  excellence)  with  the  omission  of  books  XI, 
XIII,  XIV,  XV,  XVII,  XXI,  if  desired. 
Parkman.     Oregon  Trail,  or 
Thoreau.     Walden. 

II  Shakspere.     Midsummer  Night's  Dream. 
As  You  Like  It. 

Suggested  for  supplementary  reading.  Descriptive 
literature  by  various  authors;  for  example,  Haw- 
thorne, Lowell,  Goldsmith,  Blackmore,  Burroughs, 
Irving  and  Dickens,  in  addition  to  those  mentioned 
in  the  first  half  year. 

Composition  and  rhetoric.  The  work  of  the  term 
shall  be  as  follows: 

1  Letter  writing. 

2  Short  compositions,  both  oral  and  written,  based 
for  the  most  part  on  the  experience  of  the  student. 
A  fair  proportion  of  them  shall  be  descriptions.  The 
subjects  chosen  should  be  simple  in  character,  and 
should  relate  to  what  the  student  has  seen  in  real 
life  or  in  imagination. 

3  Elementary  study  of  the  paragraph,  and  of  unity 
and  coherence  in  the  composition  and  in  the  sentence. 

Grammar.  Analysis  of  sentences.  Practice  in  the 
conversion  of  direct  into  indirect  discourse  (state- 
ments, questions,  commands)  and  vice  versa,  in  the 
oral  and  written  composition  of  students;  definition 
and  uses  of  phrases  and  clauses;  study  of  synonyms 
and  homonyms. 


FIRST    YEAR   ENGLISH 

CHAPTER  I 

ORAL  COMPOSITION 

Language  i&  an  art,  and  a  glorious  one,  whose  influence 
extends  over  all  others  and  in  which  all  science  whatever  must 
center.  J.  Horne  Tooke. 

I  Introduction.  During  the  eighteenth  century  there 
lived  in  London  a  man  who  shone  without  an  equal  even 
among  the  brilUant  men  who  comprised  the  literary 
commonwealth  of  that  day.  This  man  was  Dr.  Samuel 
Johnson.  Strange  to  say,  his  fame  rests  not  upon  what 
he  did  nor  upon  what  he  wrote,  but  upon  what  he  said. 
"  The  influence,"  says  Macaulay,  "  exercised  by  his 
conversation,  directly  upon  those  with  whom  he  lived, 
and  indirectly  upon  the  whole  literary  world,  was  alto- 
gether without  a  parallel." 

Few  students  realize  that  everything  we  say  is  really 
composition  and  may  possess  just  as  much  true  merit 
as  anything  that  we  may  write.  Oral  composition  is 
far  more  common  and  scarcely  less  important  than 
written  work.  Oral  compositions  reach  only  the  hearers, 
and  are  easily  forgotten,  while  wTitten  compositions  are 
more  widely  known  and  more  permanent.  Upon  the 
individual  whom  it  reaches,  however,  oral  expression  is 
the  more  effective  of  the  two,  for  into  it  the  personality 
of  the  author  enters  more  prominently. 

9 


10  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

2  Conversation.  The  least  formal  and  most  com- 
mon form  of  oral  composition  is  conversation.  No  topic 
is  too  trivial  or  too  serious  to  be  barred  from  conversa- 
tion. Just  because,  however,  conversation  is  so  com- 
mon and  so  informal,  we  are  most  likely  to  become 
careless  of  the  English  we  use  in  it.  There  are  two 
excellent  reasons  why  we  should  be  ever  watchful  of 
errors  in  our  conversation.  First,  we  are  judged  by 
our  speech.  The  use  of  correct  English  is  an  important 
indication  of  refinement  and  education.  An  illiterate 
man  literally  ''  speaks  for  himself."  Second,  if  we  toler- 
ate errors  in  spoken  language  we  are  likely  to  make  the 
same  mistakes  in  written  work.  Such  expressions  as  "He 
has  went  "  or  "  She  don't  "  if  tolerated  in  conversation 
repeat  themselves  on  paper.  Thus  it  behooves  us  to  cul- 
tivate the  habit  of  careful  expression  in  conversation. 

3  Pronunciation  and  enunciation.  In  conversation, 
moreover,  as  well  as  in  other  forms  of  oral  expression, 
we  need  to  pay  particular  attention  to  pronunciation 
and  enunciation.  [Consult  the  dictionary  for  the  differ- 
ence in  the  meaning  of  these  terms.]  A  word  mispro- 
nounced is  an  indication  of  carelessness  or  ignorance. 
Distinctness  in  speaking  is  also  necessary  in  order  that 
we  may  be  clearly  understood.  AVords  in  sentences 
should  not  be  carelessly  dropped  nor  should  syllables 
in  words  be  omitted.  "  How  de  do?  "  for  "  How  do 
you  do?  "  is  not  only  inelegant  but  incorrect.  "  Libr'y  " 
for  "  library  "  and  similar  mistakes  are  also  indications 
of  haste  and  inaccuracy.  Words  ending  in  "  —  ing" 
are  particularly  liable  to  contractions  of  this  kind,  the 
final   "  g "  being   commonly  omitted.     Our    conversa- 


ORAL   COMPOSITION  11 

tional  speech  is  so  much  a  matter  of  habit  with  us 
that  it  is  only  by  close  attention  to  these  little  errors  in 
our  everyday  language  that  we  can  acquire  the  habit 
of  correct  and  elegant  usage. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Discuss  the  following  topic  in  class;  make  your  state- 
ments hi   complete  sentences,    containing  clear,   simple 
language:  What  kind  of  stories  do  you  like  best? 

(2) 
Report  orally  some  conversation  that  you   have  had 
or  have  heard  within  a  day  or  two;  as,  for  instance,  a 
discussion  with  your  teacher  as  to  your  choice  of  subjects 
for  this  year.     Try  to  repeat  the  exact  words  used. 

(3) 
Imagining  a  child  to  be  j-our  hearer,  retell  a  fairy 
tale,  such  asCinderella  or  The  Three  Bears.     Report  the 
conversation  in  what  you  imagine  to  be  the  exact  words 
of  the  speakers. 

(4) 
Read  the  following  story  once,  then  close  your  book 
and  see  how  well  3^ou  can  repeat  it,  paying  particular 
attention  to  the  conversation. 

YUSSOUF 

A  stranger  came  one  night  to  Yussouf  s  tent, 

Saying,  "Behold  one  outcast  and  in  dread, 

Against  whose  life  the  bow  of  power  is  bent. 

Who  flies,  and  hath  not  wher-^  to  lay  his  head ; 

I  come  to  thee  for  shelter  and  for  food. 

To  Yussouf,  called  through  all  our  tribes  '  The  Good.'  " 


12  FIRST  YEAR  ENGLISH 

"This  tent  is  mine,"  said  Yussouf,  "but  no  more 

Than  it  is  God's;  come  in,  and  be  at  peace; 

Freely  slialt  thou  partalce  of  all  my  store 

As  I  of  His  who  buildeth  over  these 

Our  tents  His  glorious  roof  of  night  and  day. 

And  at  whose  door  none  ever  yet  heard  nay." 

So  Yussouf  entertained  his  guest  that  night, 
And  waking  him  ere  day,  said :  "  Here  is  gold ; 
My  swiftest  horse  is  saddled  for  thj'  flight; 
Depart  before  the  prying  day  grow  bold." 
As  one  lamp  lights  another,  nor  grows  less, 
So  nobleness  enkindleth  nobleness. 

That  inward  hght  the  stranger's  face  made  grand. 
Which  shines  from  all  self-conquest ;  kneeUng  low, 
He  bowed  his  forehead  upon  Yussouf's  hand, 
Sobbing:  "0  Sheik,  I  cannot  leave  thee  so; 
I  will  repay  thee ;  all  this  thou  hast  done 
Unto  that  Ibrahim  who  slew  thy  son!" 

"Take  thrice  the  gold,"  said  Yussouf,  "for  with  thee 

Into  the  desert,  never  to  return, 

My  one  black  thought  shall  ride  away  from  me ; 

First-born,  for  whom  by  day  and  night  I  yearn, 

Balanced  and  just  are  all  of  God's  decrees ; 

Thou  art  avenged,  my  first-born,  sleep  in  peace!" 

(5) 

Discuss  in  class  the  following:  Which  of  your  studies 
in  school  have  you  found  most  interesting? 

(6) 

Consult  the  dictionary  for  the  meaning  and  the  pro- 
nunciation of  each  of  the  following  words: 


ORAL    COMPOSITION 


13 


alert 

illustrate 

diphtheria 

receipt 

subtile 

isolated 

recipe 

column 

dispersion 

bronchial 

literature 

courteous 

partridges 

mischievous 

accUmate 

demonstrate 

lamentable 

hearth 

incomparable 

construe 

pathos 

synonym 

antonym 

politic 

(7) 
Pronounce  the  following  words  clearly  and  accurately, 
taking  care  not  to  omit  or  give  indistinctly  any  of  the 
syllables: 


considerable 

general 

laboratory 

noticeable 

accept 

inspiration 

except 

veteran 

recitation 

kept 

children 

memorize 

arithmetic 

going 

Tennessee 

family 

participle 

everything 

participial 

cabbage 

government 

trigonometry 

geography 

abstraction 

doing 

reading 

several 

education 

miscellaneous 

heroine 

deduct 

potato 

veterinary 

imaginary 

4  Recitation.  Next  to  conversation  the  student  has 
occasion  to  use  most  frequently  the  form  of  oral  expres- 
sion known  as  recitation.  Just  as  conversation  covers 
topics  of  all  kinds,  both  commonplace  and  lofty,  so  reci- 


14  FIRST  YEAR   ENGLISH 

tation  belongs  not  alone  to  English  but  to  all  subjects. 
A  student  who  uses  bad  grammar  in  explaining  a  prob- 
lem in  algebra  cannot  expect  to  make  a  fine  recitation 
in  English,  any  more  than  a  student  who  lacks  the 
ability  to  reproduce  a  good  story  can  give  a  good  reci- 
tation in  history. 

Three  things  should  be  considered  in  reciting.  First, 
make  complete  statements.  There  are  cases  in  which  a 
brief  answer  perhaps  of  only  one  word  is  needed,  but 
these  are  rare.  Common  sense  Avill  teach  the  student 
when  such  an  answer  is  appropriate.  Complete  state- 
ments give  force  and  weight  to  the  subject  matter,  as 
well  as  aid  in  forming  correct  habits  of  expression. 

A  recitation  should  not  commence  with  "  Well-a." 
It  is  better  to  take  a  moment  for  arranging  material 
before  beginning  at  all  than  to  try  to  bridge  the  gap  by 
such  insignificant  articulations. 

Topical  recitations  should  always  be  given  unless  the 
question  asked  requires  merely  a  simple  term  in  reply. 
Whenever  a  question  demands  more  than  one  state- 
ment in  answer,  the  reply  should  be  so  planned  that  the 
statements  follow  in  logical  order.  Moreover,  all  the 
facts  directly  bearing  upon  the  subject  in  question 
should  be  included  in  the  complete  recitation,  although 
it  is  not  necessary  to  give  information  which  is  related 
to  the  matter  under  discussion  but  which  is  not  asked 
for.  A  topical  recitation  is  valuable  only  so  far  as  it 
is  both  definite  and  comprehensive. 

For  instance,  suppose  the  question  in  American  his- 
tory is,  "  What  poHtical  parties  existed  in  1800  ? " 
The  answer  "  Federahsts  and  Anti-federalists  "  is  suffi- 


ORAL   COMPOSITION  15 

cient.  But  if  the  tojpic  under  discussion  is  "Political 
parties  in  1800,"  not  only  should  the  names  of  the 
parties  be  mentioned,  but  the  underlying  principles  and 
the  leaders  of  each  should  be  given.  It  is  not,  however, 
necessary  to  give  information  concerning  the  gradual 
development  of  these  parties  in  succeeding  years,  for 
the  date  1800  limits  the  discussion  to  that  particular 
year. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Listen  carefully  to  at  least  two  recitations  in  class, 
noting  the  incomplete  statements  made.  Note,  too, 
whether  the  one  who  recited  mentioned  all  that  should 
be  stated  about  the  topic  in  question,  and  whether  he 
gave  any  information  that  was  not  asked  for. 

(2) 

Consult  the  dictionary  to  find  the  exact  meaning  of 
the  following  synonyms  and  form  sentences  showing  the 
correct  use  of  each  word: 


kill 

abandon 

opponent 

murder 

desert 

rival 

assassinate 

forsake 

competitor 

Arrange  your  matter  in  logical  order  and  be  prepared 
to  give  a  topical  recitation  on  each  of  the  groups. 

(3) 

From  the  dictionary  find  the  derivation  of  each  of 
the  following  words,  stating  in  a  complete  sentence  the 
result  of  your  search  in  each  case: 

capricious  umbrella 

ridiculous  boycott 


16  FIRST  YEAR    ENGLISH 

(4) 

From  one  of  the  dictionary  supplements  find  who 
or  what  each  of  the  following  was  : 

The  Wandering  Jew.  The  Lady  of  Shalott. 

Be  prepared  to  recite  the  information  you  obtain. 

(5) 

Give  an  oral  abstract  (a  shortened  form  of  the  in- 
formation given  at  some  length  in  the  original  account) 
of  some  article  from  the  daily  paper.  Make  a  slight  pause 
whenever  you  have  told  all  of  the  facts  on  any  one  phase 
of  the  topic. 

(6) 

Give  an  oral  abstract  of  some  short  magazine  article 
that  you  have  read,  following  the  same  plan  suggested 
in  the  preceding  question. 

Note.  —  Topics  from  current  literature  may  be  selected  by 
the  teacher. 

(7) 

Sometimes  the  selection  is  so  valuable  that  nothing 
can  with  propriety  be  omitted,  nor  can  it  be  told  so  well 
in  other  words.  Memorize  one  or  more  of  the  following, 
and  repeat  in  class,  paying  particular  attention  to  expres- 
sion and  pronunciation. 

Break,  break,  break, 

On  thy  cold  gray  stones,  O  sea! 
And  I  would  that  my  tongue  could  utter 

The  thoughts  that  arise  in  me. 

O  well  for  the  fisherman's  boy, 
That  he  shouts  with  his  sister  at  playl 

O  well  for  the  sailor  lad. 
That  he  sings  in  his  boat  on  the  bayl 


ORAL    COMPOSITION  17 

And  the  stately  ships  go  on 

To  their  haven  under  the  hill ; 
But  O  for  the  touch  of  a  vanish 'd  hand, 

And  the  sound  of  a  voice  that  is  still! 

Break,  break,  break, 

At  the  foot  of  thy  crags,  O  sea! 
But  the  tender  grace  of  a  day  that  is  dead 

Will  never  come  back  to  me. 

Tennyson. 

So  Uve,  that  when  thy  summons  comes  to  join 
The  innumerable  caravan  which  moves 
To  that  mysterious  realm  where  each  shall  take 
His  chamber  in  the  silent  halls  of  death, 
Thou  go,  not  Uke  the  quarry  slave  at  night, 
Scourged  to  his  dungeon,  but,  sustained  and  soothed 
By  an  unfaltering  trust,  approach  thy  grave 
Like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch 
About  him  and  lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams. 

Bry-^nt,  Thanatopsis. 

If  thou  art  worn  and  hard  beset 

With  sorrows  that  thou  wouldst  forget. 

If  thou  wouldst  read  a  lesson  that  will  keep 

Thy  heart  from  fainting  and  thy  soul  from  sleep, 

Go  to  the  woods  and  hills!     No  tears 

Dim  the  sweet  look  that  Nature  wears. 

Longfellow,  Sunrise  on  the  HiUs. 

The  splendor  falls  on  castle  walls 

And  snowy  summits'  old  in  story : 
The  long  light  shakes  across  the  lakes, 
And  the  wild  cataract  leaps  in  glory. 
Blow,  bugle,  blow,  set  the  wi\&  echoes  flying, 
Blow,  bugle ;  answer,  echoes,  dying,  dying,  dying. 


18  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

Oh  hark,  oh  hear!  how  thin  and  clear, 
And  thinner,  clearer,  farther  going! 
Oh  sweet  and  far  from  cUff  and  scar 
The  horns  of  Elfland  faintly  blowing! 
Blow,  let  us  hear  the  purple  glens  replying : 
Blow,  bugle;  answer,  echoes,  dying,  dying,  dying. 

O  love!  they  die  in  yon  rich  sky, 

They  faint  on  hill  or  field  or  river : 
Our  echoes  roll  from  soul  to  soul. 
And  grow  for  ever  and  for  ever. 
Blow,  bugle,  blow,  set  the  wild  echoes  flying. 
And  answer,  echoes,  answer,  dying,  dying,  dying. 

Tennyson,  The  Princess. 

Build  thee  more  stately  mansions,  O  my  soul, 

As  the  swift  seasons  roll! 

Leave  thy  low- vaulted  past! 
Let  each  new  temple,  nobler  than  the  last, 
Shut  thee  from  heaven  with  a  dome  more  vast. 
Till  thou  at  length  art  free. 

Leaving  thine  outgrown  shell  by  life's  unresting  sea! 
Holmes,  The  Chambered  Nautilus. 

5  Extempore  speaking  and  debating.  A  third  form 
of  oral  composition  not  so  common  as  conversation  or 
recitation  is  the  extempore  speech.  It  is  a  great  ad- 
vantage to  a  person  to  be  able  to  "  think  when  upon 
his  feet."  In  conversation  one  remark  alternates  with 
another;  first  one  person  speaks  and  then  his  companion 
replies.  Whenever  either  individual  goes  into  detail 
so  that  he  discourses  at  some  length  on  his  side  of  the 
question  he  is  really  making  a  speech.  In  debating  we 
have  the  same  kind  of  composition.     First  one  debater 


ORAL  COMPOSITION  19 

delivers  a  speech,  then  his  opponent  repHes,  Althoiigh 
in  debates  the  speeches  are  so  long  that  they  are  often 
written  out,  it  is  an  immense  advantage  to  be  able  to 
express  one's  ideas  without  being  confined  to  a  written 
article.  The  leaders,  in  either  case,  must,  in  summing 
up,  be  able  to  make  their  final  arguments  extemporarily. 
The  secret  of  clear  debating  or  of  good  speech-making 
lies  in  quick,  clear  thinking  and  in  arrangement  of  mate- 
rial in  correct  order. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
State  orally  the  reasons  why  you  consider  English  a 
harder  an  easy  study.     Begin  by  saying,  "  I  think  Eng- 
lish is  a  hard  (or  an  easy)  study,  because " 

(2) 
State  your   preference   for    winter  or  summer.     Give 
your  reasons. 

(3) 
What  holiday  is  most  enjoyable?     Why? 

Contrast  the  study  of  English  with  some  other  study, 
giving  three  reasons  to  prove  or  disprove  that  the  study 
of  English  is  the  more  interesting.  Begin  your  oral 
recitation  by  saying,  "There  are  three  good  reasons  why 

I  find  that  English  is  [not]  more  interesting  than " 

[Name  some  other  subject  that  you  have  studied  or  are 
now  pursuing.] 

(5) 

Give  orally  four  reasons  wh}^  3'ou  would  rather  live 
in  New  York  than  in  Florida  [or  in  Florida  than  in  New 


20  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

York].     Preface  your  reasons  by  first,  second,  third,  and 
fourth. 

(6) 

Arrange  for  a  short  debate  in  your  class  on  a  topic 
suggested  by  your  teacher.  The  number  of  debaters 
should  be  limited  to  three  on  each  side.  Those  taking 
part  should  not  be  allowed  to  use  written  speeches,,  but 
should  be  restricted  to  notes.  The  rest  of  the  class  should 
note  incomplete  statements,  mistakes  in  pronunciation, 
and  errors  in  grammar  made  by  the  speakers. 

(7) 

Commit  to  memory  the  following  speech  and  recite  it 
in  class.  Pay  particular  attention  to  naturalness  of 
expression. 

Fourscore  and  seven  years  ago  our  fathers  brought  forth 
upon  this  continent  a  new  nation,  conceived  in  liberty,  and 
dedicated  to  the  proposition  that  all  men  are  created  equal. 
Now  we  are  engaged  in  a  great  civil  war,  testing  whether  that 
nation,  or  any  nation  so  conceived  and  so  dedicated  can  long 
endure.  We  are  met  on  a  great  battlefield  of  that  war.  We 
have  come  to  dedicate  a  portion  of  that  field  as  a  final  resting- 
place  for  those  who  here  gave  their  lives  that  that  nation  might 
live.  It  is  altogether  fitting  and  proper  that  we  should  do  this ; 
but  in  a  larger  sense,  we  cannot  dedicate,  we  cannot  conse- 
crate, we  cannot  hallow  this  ground.  The  brave  men,  living 
and  dead,  who  struggled  here,  have  consecrated  it  far  above 
our  power  to  add  or  detract.  The  world  will  little. note,  nor 
long  remember,  what  we  say  here,  but  it  can  never  forget  what 
they  did  here.  It  is  for  us  —  the  living  —  rather  to  be  dedi- 
cated here  to  the  unfinished  work  which  they  who  fought  here 
have  thus  far  so  nobly  advanced.  It  is  rather  for  us  to  be 
here  dedicated  to  the  great  task  remaining  before  us,  that 
from  these  honored  dead  we  take  increased  demotion  to  that 


ORAL  COMPOSITION  21 

cause  for  which  they  gave  the  last  full  measure  of  devotion; 
that  we  here  resolve  that  these  dead  shall  not  have  died  in 
vain;  that  this  nation,  under  God,  shall  have  a  new  birth  of 
freedom,  and  that  government  of  the  people,  by  the  people, 
and  for  the  people,  shall  not  perish  from  the  earth. 

Lincoln,  Gettysburg  Address. 

6  Oral  reproduction.  Most  of  your  class  work  on  the 
literature  of  this  course  will  necessarily  be  oral  repro- 
duction. It  will  be  needful  to  retell  the  stories  you 
have  read,  to  tell  how  the  people  in  the  books  looked 
or  how  they  acted  or  what  they  said.  You  will  also 
have  occasion  to  discuss  their  manner  of  living,  their 
customs,  their  dress,  their  occupations,  etc.  To  be 
able  to  recount  clearly  so  man}^  different  things  you 
should  first  arrange  your  material  before  you  begin  to 
speak,  putting  all  the  ideas  that  belong  to  one  topic 
apart  in  a  group  by  themselves.  This  kind  of  work  has 
already  been  suggested  in  the  preceding  exercises.  In 
this  way  you  are  learning  how  to  paragraph. 

7  The  paragraph.  A  paragraph,  whether  oral  or 
written,  is  a  group  of  related  sentences  developing  a 
single  topic.  It  bears  to  the  prose  composition  some- 
thing of  the  same  relation  that  the  stanza  does  to  a 
poem,  except  that  its  form  and  length  are  not  fixed  as 
in  the  case  of  the  latter.  The  point  to  observe  is  that 
each  paragraph  centers  about  a  single  topic  or  idea. 
This  topic  or  central  thought  of  the  paragraph  is  some- 
times stated  directly  in  some  sentence,  usually  the  first, 
of  the  paragraph  itself,  but  sometimes  it  is  not  expressed 
at  all,  so  that  it  is  necessary  for  us  to  supply  one.  This 
is  a  test  of  the  paragraph,  for  if  one  central  thought 


22  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

cannot  be  found,  the  paragraph  lacks  unity  or  oneness 
of  thought,  and  is  therefore  not  properly  constructed. 

In  writing  or  speaking  the  simplest  way  is  to  begin 
the  paragraph  by  stating  the  topic  in  the  first  sentence. 
This  will  aid  in  making  the  paragraph  a  unit,  for  when 
all  has  been  given  relating  to  this  subject,  a  new  topic 
sentence  and  a  new  paragraph  naturally  follow. 

Read  the  following  selection  carefully  and  point  out 
the  central  thought  of  each  paragraph,  showing  that 
each  paragraph  has  unity.  Then  reproduce  the  selec- 
tion orally,  making  your  oral  paragraphs  correspond 
\vith  the  printed  ones. 

Leaving  these  haunted  tanks  behind  us,  we  pursued  our 
ramble  up  a  solitary  mule-path  winding  among  the  hills, 
and  soon  found  ourselves  amidst  wild  and  melancholy 
mountains,  destitute  of  trees,  and  here  and  there  tinted 
with  scanty  verdure.  Everything  within  sight  was  severe 
and  sterile,  and  it  was  scarcely  possible  to  realize  the 
idea  that  but  a  short  distance  behind  us  was  the  Generalife, 
with  its  blooming  orchards  and  terraced  gardens,  and  that 
we  were  in  the  vicinity  of  delicious  Granada,  that  city  of 
groves  and  fountains.  But  such  is  the  nature  of  Spain; 
wild  and  stern  the  moment  it  escapes  from  cultivation; 
the  desert  and  garden  are  ever  side  by  side. 

We  at  length  arrived  on  the  highest  part  of  the  pro- 
montory above  Granada,  called  the  mountain  of  the  sun. 
The  evening  was  approaching;  the  setting  sun  just  gilded 
the  loftiest  heights.  Here  and  there  a  solitary  shepherd 
might  be  descried  driving  his  flock  down  the  declivities, 
to  be  folded  for  the  night;  or  a  muleteer  and  his  lagging 
animals,  threading  some  mountain  path  to  arrive  at  the 
city  gates  before  nightfali. 


ORAL   COMPOSITION  23 

Presently  the  deep  tones  of  the  cathedral  bell  came 
swelling  up  the  defiles,  proclaiming  the  hour  of  ''  oration  " 
or  prayer.  The  note  was  responded  to  from  the  belfry 
of  every  church,  and  from  the  sweet  bells  of  the  convents 
among  the  mountains.  The  shepherd  paused  on  the  fold 
of  the  hill,  the  muleteer  in  the  midst  of  the  road;  each 
took  off  his  hat  and  remained  motionless  for  a  time,  mur- 
muring his  evening  prayer.  There  is  always  something 
pleasingly  solemn  in  this  custom,  by  which,  at  a  melodi- 
ous signal,  every  human  being  throughout  the  land  vmites 
at  the  same  moment  in  a  tribute  of  thanks  to  God  for  the 
mercies  of  the  day.  It  spreads  a  transient  sanctity  over 
the  land,  and  the  sight  of  the  sun  sinking  in  all  his  glory 
adds  not  a  little  to  the  solemnity  of  the  scene. 

In  the  present  instance  the  effect  was  heightened  by 
the  wild  and  lonely  nature  of  the  place.  We  were  on  the 
naked  and  broken  summit  of  the  haunted  mountain  of 
the  sun,  where  ruined  tanks  and  cisterns,  and  the  mould- 
ering foundations  of  extensive  buildings,  spoke  of  former 
populousness,  but  where  all  was  now  silent  and  desolate. 

Irving,  The  Alhambra. 


EXERCISE 

In  the  following  exercises  heed  carefully  the  directions 
given  in  the  preceding  sections.  Pay  particular  attention 
to  the  use  of  correct  language,  to  exactness  of  subject 
matter,  and  to  paragraphing. 

Note  to  Teacher.  These  exercises  are  based  on  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  first  chapters  of  the  prescribed  reading  of  the  course. 
[See  outline  in  the  preface.]  They  are  merely  suggestive  of  the 
work  to  be  done  along  this  line  and  may  be  multiplied  in- 
definitelv. 


24  FIRST    YKAK    P:NGLlsri 

IVANHOE 

Chapter  I. 

(1) 
Tell  how  Gurth  looked  when  he  first  appears  in  Ivanhoc, 
giving  details  concerning  his  size,  color  of  hair  and  beard, 
his  clothes,  his  weapons,  and  his  occupation.     Describe 
Wamba  in  the  same  way. 

(2) 
What  difference  in  the  characters  or  temperaments 
of  Wamba  and  Gurth  is  set  forth  in  the  first  chapter  of 

Ivanhoe  ? 

(3) 

Tell  all  you  can  concerning  the  conditions  of  the 
Saxons  and  of  the  Normans  in  England  at  this  time. 

(4) 
Retell  the  opening  conversation  between  Gurth  and 
Wamba,  bringing  out  the  difference  between  the  Saxon 
and  the  Norman  languages.    What  language  did  they  use? 

QUENTIN   DURWARD 

Chapters  I  and  II. 

(5) 

Contrast  the  characters  of  Louis  XI  and  the  Duke  of 
Burgundy  as  described  in  Chapter  I.  Which  do  you  like 
better  ?     Whv  ? 

(6) 

Describe  Quentin  Durward  as  he  first  appears  in  the 
story.  How  did  he  look  ?  How  did  he  greet  the  people 
he  met  ? 

(7) 

Describe  the  older  of  the  two  men  whom  Quentin  met 
by  the  brook  side.     "What  did  Quentin  think  of  him  at 


ORAL    COMPOSITION  25 

first  ?     What  did  he  think  of  him  after  the  service  in  the 
chapel  ? 

Treasure  Isl.\nd 
Chapters  I-III. 

(8) 
Describe  the  scene  between  Dr.  Livesey  and  the  old 
Buccaneer  in  the  inn  parlor.     [Chapter  I] 

(9) 
Why  do  you  think  Black  Dog  came  to  see  the  old 
Buccaneer  ?     How  did  their  talk  end  ?     [Chapter  II] 

(10) 
What  was  the  Black  Spot  ?     Describe  the  person  who 
brought  it  to  the  old  Buccaneer.     [Chapter  III] 

The  Ancient  Mariner 

(11) 
What  three  changes  came  over  the  wedding  guest  as 
the  ancient  mariner  continued  his  story  ? 

(12) 
Compare  the  ancient  mariner  and  the  wedding  guest 
as  to  (a)  looks,  (6)  kind  of  man. 

(13) 
Give  an  account  of  the  ancient  mariner's  return  to  his 
home  country. 

Lays  of  Ancient  Rome 
Horatiiis. 

(14) 

Who  were  the  Tarquins?  Locate  Rome,  Tiber,  Etruria, 
Apennine.  Name  some  of  the  Tuscan  cities  mentioned  in 
the  opening  stanzas  of  H  or  alius. 


26  FIRST    VEAll    ENGLISH 

(15) 
What  kind  of  man  do  you  think  Lars  Porsena  was? 
Compare  the  remark  raade  by  him  in  stanza  63  with  that 
of  Sextus  immediately  following. 

The  Vision  of  Sni  Launfal 
(16) 

Did  Lowell  love  nature  ?  Support  your  answer  by 
reference  to  The  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal. 

•      (17) 
Compare  the  scenes  withm  and  without  the  castle  when 
Sir  Launfal  returned. 

SOHRAB    AND    RUSTUM 

(18) 
Describe    the    battle    between    Sohrab    and    Rustum. 
What  dazed  Sohrab  so  that  he  let  himself  be  wounded  ? 

The  Raven 

(19) 

What  was  the  poet  doing  when  the  Raven  appeared  to 
him  ?  What  time  of  the  day  and  of  the  year  was  it  ? 
Describe  the  room  in  which  he  was  sitting  as  accurately 
as  you  can. 

Snow-Bound 

(20) 

Tell  about  each  of  the  persons  who  were  snow-bound 
with  the  poet. 

The  Courtship  of  Miles  Standish 

(21) 
Compare  John  Alden  with  Miles  Standish.     Which  do 
you  admire  more  ?     Why  ? 


CHAPTER  II 

WRITTEN  COMPOSITION 

But  words  are  things,  and  a  small  drop  of  ink, 

Falling,  like  dew,  upon  a  thought,  produces 

That  which  makes  thousands,  perhaps  millions,  think. 

Byron. 

8  Purpose.  Written  composition  differs  from  oral 
composition  in  that  it  is  meant  either  to  reach  some 
one  at  a  distance,  or  to  address  itself  to  a  larger  num- 
ber of  persons,  or  to  be  read  at  some  future  time.  In- 
deed it  is  not  infrequently  the  case  that  a  writer  has  in 
view  the  accomplishment  of  all  three  of  these  ends  not 
attained  by  oral  composition.  Spoken  statements  are 
often  carelessly  composed  and  quickly  forgotten,  but 
most  written  expressions  are  meant  to  be  more  or  less 
lasting.  No  matter  whether  the  composition  is  in  the 
form  of  a  letter,  a  diary,  an  essay,  a  history,  or  a 
story,  the  writer  expects  it  to  be  read.  Therefore  it 
behooves  him  to  write  so  that  the  reader  not  only  may 
but  must  understand.  In  oral  composition  certain  in- 
tonations of  the  voice,  movements  of  the  lips,  pauses, 
gestures,  expressions  of  the  face,  aid  the  speaker  to 
express  his  meaning.  But  in  written  composition  none 
of  these  helps  are  available.  The  word  forms  only  are 
there  and  the  reader  must  himself  supply  whatever  is 
lacking. 

27 


28  FIRST  YEAR  ENGLISH 

9  Form.  In  order  to  help  the  reader  to  understand 
readily  whatever  we  may  write  it  is  necessary  that  our 
compositions  have  a  certain  form.  Legibility  and  neat- 
ness are  aids  to  easy  and  pleasurable  comprehension. 
A  soiled  or  carelessly  written  letter,  for  instance,  may 
sometimes  cause  the  writer  both  shame  and  pecuniary 
loss.  Since  an  applicant  for  a  position  is  usually 
judged  by  his  letter  of  application,  a  slovenly  written 
one  may  cost  him  the  position.  Needless  delay  and 
annoyance  may  be  caused  by  an  illegible  business  letter. 

For  uniformity  in  class  work  the  following  mechanical 
rules  should  be  adopted: 

1  Write  only  on  one  side  of  the  paper. 

2  Use  either  black  ink  or  the  blue  writing  fluid 
which  becomes  black  on  exposure  to  the  air. 

3  Leave  a  one-inch  margin  at  the  left  side  of  the 
paper.  Most  theme  paper  is  now  made  with  lines  on 
one  side  only  and  with  a  wide  margin  ruled  off  from  the 
left  edge. 

4  Put  the  title  in  the  middle  of  the  first  line.  Begin 
the  principal  words  of  the  title  with  capitals. 

5  Leave  a  line  blank  after  the  title. 

6  Indent  the  first  line  of  writing  at  least  three  fourths 
of  an  inch  from  the  marginal  line,  i.e.  one  and  three 
fourths  inches  from  the  edge.  Indent  likewise  the  first 
line  of  every  group  of  sentences  known  as  a  paragraph. 
Most  short  compositions  should  contain  but  one  or  two 
paragraphs. 

7  Do  not  divide  a  word  at  the  end  of  a  hne.  This 
is  done  in  printing  but  it  is  not  necessary  in  written 
work.     If  the  remaining  portion  of  the  line  is  too  short 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  29 

to  contain  the  word  to  be  written,  put  the  whole  of  the 
word  on  the  next  line. 

The  following  model  is  prepared  in  accordance  with 
these  rules.  Notice  particularly  the  direct  conversation 
^v^itten  in  correct  form. 


0^  \/<Z^^:^LjhJL  6  .<A^UJU-^^;^AJL 


30  FIRST   YEAR  ENGLISH 

8  Equal  care  should  be  taken  with  the  outside  of  the 
composition.  The  sheets  should  be  carefully  numbered, 
the  numbers  being  placed  in  the  upper  right-hand  corner. 

9  The  sheets  of  the  composition  should  then  be  folded 
lengthwise,  and  the  name,  the  date,  and  the  subject  should 
be  placed  in  the  upper  left-hand  corner  on  the  back  of 
the  last  page. 

Note.  —  The  following  abbreviations  are  suggested  for  use 
in  correcting  pu{)ils'  compositions. 

p.  =  punctuation, 
sp.  =  spelling, 
cap.  =  capitalization. 

Tf  =  paragraph. 
No  ^  =  no  paragraph  needed. 

s.  s.  =  sentence  structure, 
gram.  =  grammatical  error. 

amb.  =  ambiguous  —  has  more  than  one  meaning. 
A      =  something  omitted. 
O     =  should  be  one  word.         downstairs. 

EXERCISE 

Rewrite  each  of  the  following  in  your  own  words, 
arranging  the  manuscript  according  to  the  preceding 
directions  • 

THE  STORY  OF  JUSTICE 

Once  in  an  ancient  city,  whose  name  I  no  longer  remember. 
Raised  aloft  on  a  column,  a  brazen  statue  of  Justice 
Stood  in  the  public  square,  upholding  the  scales  in  its  left  hand, 
And  in  its  right  a  sword,  as  an  emblem  that  justice  presided 
Over  the  laws  of  the  land,  and  the  hearts  and  homes  of  the 
people. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  31 

Even  the  birds  had  built  their  nests  in  the  scales  of  the  balance, 
Having  no  fear  of  the  sword  that  flashed  in  the  sunshine  above 

them. 
But  in  the  course  of  time  the  laws  of  the  land  were  corrupted ; 
Might  took  the  place  of  right,  and  the  weak  were  oppressed,  and 

the  mighty 
Ruled  with  an  iron  rod.     Then  it  chanced  in  a  nobleman's 

palace 
That  a  necklace  of  pearls  was  lost  and  ere  long  a  suspicion 
Fell  on  an  orphan  girl  who  hved  as  maid  in  the  household. 
She,  after  form  of  trial  condemned  to  die  on  the  scaffold, 
Patiently  met  her  doom  at  the  foot  of  the  statue  of  Justice. 
As  to  her  Father  in  heaven  her  innocent  spirit  ascended, 
Lo!  o'er  the  city  a  tempest  rose;  and  the  bolts  of  the  thunder 
Smote  the  statue  of  bronze,  and  hurled  in  wrath  from  its  left 

hand 
Down  on  the  pavement  below  the  clattering  scales  of  the  balance 
And  in  the  hollow  thereof  was  found  the  nest  of  a  magpie, 
Into  whose  clay-built  walls  the  necklace  of  pearls  was  inwoven. 

Longfellow,  Evangeline. 

ABOU  BEN  ADHEM  AND  THE  ANGEL 

Abou  Ben  Adhem  (may  his  tribe  increase) 
Awoke  one  night  from  a  deep  dream  of  peace, 
And  saw  within  the  moonhght  in  his  room, 
Making  it  rich,  and  Uke  a  Uly  in  bloom, 
An  angel  writing  in  a  book  of  gold : 
Exceeding  peace  had  made  Ben  Adhem  bold, 
And  to  the  Presence  in  the  room  he  said, 
"What  WTitest  thou?"  —  The  \nsion  raised  its  head 
And  vnth  a  look  made  all  of  sweet  accord. 
Answered,  "The  names  of  those  who  love  the  Lord.'' 
"And  is  mine  one?"  said  Abou.     "Nay,  not  so," 
Rephed  the  angel.     Abou  spoke  more  low 
But  cheerily  still,  and  said,  "I  pray  thee,  then 
Write  me  as  one  that  loves  his  fellowmeu." 


82  FIRST    YEAK    ENGLISH 

The  Angel  wrote  and  vanished.     The  next  night 
It  came  again  with  a  great  wakening  Hght, 
And  showed  the  names  whom  love  of  God  had  blessed, 
And  lo!  Ben  Adhem's  name  led  all  the  rest. 

Leigh  Hunt. 
TRAY 

Sing  me  a  hero!     Quendi  my  thirst 
Of  soul,  ye  bard! 

"A  beggar  child  .  .  . 

Sat  on  a  quay's  edge :  like  a  bird 

Sang  to  herself  at  careless  play, 

And  fell  into  the  stream.     ' Dismay! 

Help,  you  the  standers-by ! '     None  stirred. 

"Bystanders  reason,  think  of  wives 
And  children,  ere  they  risk  their  lives. 
Over  the  balustrade  has  bounced 
A  mere  instinctive  dog,  and  pounced 
Plumb  on  the  prize.     '  How  well  he  dives! 

" '  Up  he  comes  with  the  child,  see,  tight 
In  mouth,  alive  too,  clutched  from  quite 
A  depth  of  ten  feet  —  twelve,  I  bet ! 
Good  dog!    What,  off  again?    There's  yet 
Another  child  to  save?    All  right! 

"'  How  strange  we  saw  no  other  fall! 
It's  instinct  in  the  animal. 
Good  dog!    But  he's  a  long  while  under: 
If  he  got  drowned  I  should  not  wonder  — 
Strong  current,  that  against  the  wall! 

" '  Here  he  comes,  holds  in  mouth  this  time 

—  What  may  the  thing  be?    Well,  that's  prime! 

Now,  did  you  ever?     Reason  reigns 

In  man  alone,  since  all  Tray's  pains 

Have  fished  —  the  child's  doll  from  the  slime!' 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  33 

"Aud  so,  amid  the  laughter  gay 
Trotted  my  hero  off,  —  old  Tray,  — 
Till  somebody,  prerogatived 
With  reason,  reasoned :  *  Why  he  dived 
His  brain  would  show  us,  I  should  say. 

"  'John,  go  and  catch  —  or  if  needs  be, 

Purchase  —  that  animal  for  me! 

By  vivisection,  at  expense 

Of  half  an  hour  and  eighteen  pence 

How  brain  secretes  dog's  soul,  we'll  see!'  " 

Robert  Browning, 

LORD   ULLIN'S   DAUGHTER 

A  chieftain  to  the  Highlands  bound 

Cries,  "Boatman,  do  not  tarry! 
And  I'll  give  thee  a  silver  pound 

To  row  us  o'er  the  ferry!" 

"Now  who  be  ye  would  cross  Lochgyle, 

This  dark  and  stormy  water?  " 
"Oh,  I'm  the  chief  of  Ulva's  isle. 

And  this,  Lord  Ulhn's  daughter. 

"And  fast  before  her  father's  men 

Three  days  we've  fled  together, 
For  should  he  find  us  in  the  glen, 

My  blood  would  stain  the  heather. 

"  His  horsemen  hard  behind  us  ride ; 

Should  they  our  steps  discover, 
Then  who  will  cheer  my  bonny  bride, 

When  they  have  slain  her  lover?" 

Out  spoke  the  hardy  Highland  wight, 

"I'll  go,  my  chief,  I'm  ready: 
It  is  not  for  your  silver  bright, 

But  for  your  winsome  lady: 


34  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

"And  by  my  word!  the  bonny  bird 

In  danger  shall  not  tarry; 
tSo  though  the  waves  are  raging  white 

I'll  row  you  o'er  the  ferry." 

By  this  the  storm  grew  loud  apace, 
The  water- wraith  was  shrieking ; 

And  in  the  scowl  of  Heaven  each  face 
Clrew  dark  as  they  were  speaking. 

But  still  as  wilder  blew  the  wind, 
And  as  the  night  grew  drearer, 

Adown  the  glen  rode  armed  men, 
Their  trampling  sounded  nearer. 

"0  haste  thee,  haste!"  the  lady  cries, 
"Though  tempests  round  us  gather; 

I'll  meet  the  raging  of  the  skies, 
But  not  an  angry  father." 

The  boat  has  left  a  stormy  land, 

A  stormy  sea  before  her,  — 
When,  oh!  too  strong  for  human  hand, 

The  tempest  gathered  o'er  her. 

And  still  they  row'd  amidst  the  roar 

Of  waters  fast  prevaihng ; 
Lord  UUin  reach'd  that  fatal  shore,  — 

His  wrath  was  changed  to  waiUng. 

For,  sore  dismay'd,  through  storm  and  shade 
His  child  he  did  discover ;  — 

One  lovely  hand  she  stretch'd  for  aid. 
And  one  was  round  her  lover. 

"Come  back!  come  back!"  he  cried  in  grief, 

"Across  this  stormy  water: 
And  I'll  forgive  your  Highland  chief. 

My  daughter!  —  Oh,  my  daughter!" 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  35 

'Twas  vain:  the  loud  waves  lash'd  the  shore, 

Return  or  aid  preventing: 
The  waters  wild  went  o'er  his  child, 

And  he  was  left  lamenting. 

T.  Campbell. 

10  Aids  to  interpretation.  Besides  purely  mechani- 
cal rules  for  the  writing  of  compositions  we  have  other 
signs  and  marks  wliich  are  valuable  aids  to  the  inter- 
pretation of  the  meaning.  These  are  capitals,  punctu- 
ation marks  and  abbreviations,  which  will  be  taken  up 
in  detail  in  the  following  chapter. 

11  Sentences.  If  we  would  write  clearly  and  ele- 
gantly, however,  we  must  guard  against  too  frequent 
use  of  abbreviations.  To  be  correct  every  sentence 
must  have  a  subject  and  a  predicate.  Except  in  expres- 
sions of  command,  where  "  you  "  is  understood,  do  not 
omit  the  subject.  When  writing  in  the  first  person, 
some  writers  have  a  careless  habit  of  leaving  out  the 
words  "  I  "  or  "  me."    The  following  illustrates  this  fault: 

Received  letter  of  12th  inst  to-day.  Will  see  that 
goods  are  shipped  at  once.  Can  furnish  only  in  ordinary- 
weight,  etc. 

This  is  the  form  to  be  used  in  taking  notes,  not  in 
careful  composition. 

The  student  should,  moreover,  bear  in  mind  that  it  is 
always  easier  to  wTite  correct  short  sentences  than  cor- 
rect long  ones.  Short  sentences,  if  used  to  excess, 
make  the  writing  jerky  and  broken.  Long  sentences, 
often  repeated,  become  monotonous  and  tire  the  reader, 
for  they  are  less  easily  understood  than  short  ones. 
The  short  sentence,  however,  is  often  used  to  advantage 


36  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

as  an  introductory  or  concluding  sentence.  Being  both 
clear  and  direct,  it  adds  strength  or  force  to  the  compo- 
sition. It  is  also  used  whenever  the  writer  desires  to 
make  a  word  picture  vivid  or  the  movement  of  a  story 
rapid  and  hfelike. 

Compare  the  following  paragraph  (A) ,  which  is  made 
of  short  sentences,  with  the  original  description  in  the 
second  paragraph  (B) . 

(A) 

Ichabod  Crane  was  a  conscientious  man.  He  never 
spared  the  rod  when  punishment  seemed  necessary.  He 
did  not  take  pleasure  in  inflicting  pain.  He  administered 
justice  with  discrimination  rather  than  severity.  The 
weak  he  passed  by  with  indulgence.  He  inflicted,  how- 
ever, a  double  portion  on  some  little  Dutch  urchin. 

(B) 

Truth  to  say,  he  was  a  conscientious  man,  that  ever 
bore  in  mind  the  golden  maxim,  "Spare  the  rod  and  spoil 
the  child."  Ichabod  Crane's  scholars  certainly  were  not 
spoiled.  I  would  not  have  it  imagined,  however,  that  he 
was  one  of  those  cruel  potentates  of  the  school  who  joy 
in  the  smart  of  their  subjects;  on  the  contrary,  he  admin- 
istered justice  with  discrimination  rather  than  severity; 
taking  the  burden  off  the  backs  of  the  weak  and  laying 
it  on  those  of  the  strong.  Your  mere  puny  stripling  that 
winced  at  the  least  flourish  of  the  rod  was  passed  by  with 
indulgence;  but  the  claims  of  justice  were  satisfied  by 
inflicting  a  double  portion  on  some  little,  tough,  -^Tong- 
headed,  broad-skirted  Dutch  urchin,  who  sulked  and 
swelled  and  grew  dogged  and  sullen  beneath  the  birch. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  37 

In  the  following  selection  from  Lamb,  note  that  the 
attention  of  the  reader  is  taxed,  owing  to  the  prevalence 
of  long  sentences,  in  endeavoring  to  follow  the  meaning 
of  the  first  paragraph. 

And  D.  has  been  underworking  for  himself  ever 
since,  —  drudging  at  low  rates  for  unappreciating  book- 
sellers, wasting  his  fine  erudition  in  silent  corrections 
of  the  classics,  and  in  those  unostentatious  but  solid 
services  to  learning  which  commonly  fall  to  the  lot  of 
laborious  scholars,  who  have  not  the  heart  to  sell  them- 
selves to  the  best  advantage.  He  has  published  poems, 
wliich  do  not  sell,  because  their  character  is  unobtrusive, 
like  his  own,  and  because  he  has  been  too  much  absorbed 
in  ancient  literature  to  know  what  the  popular  mark  in 
poetry  is,  even  if  he  could  have  hit  it.  And,  therefore, 
his  verses  are  properly,  what  he  terms  them,  crotchets; 
voluntaries;  odes  to  liberty  and  spring;  effusions;  little 
tributes  and  offerings  left  behind  him  upon  tables  and 
window  seats  at  parting  from  friends'  houses;  and  from 
all  the  inns  of  hospitality,  where  he  has  been  courteously 
(or  but  tolerably)  received  in  his  pilgrimage.  If  his  muse 
of  kindness  halt  a  little  behind  the  strong  lines  in  fashion 
in  this  excitement-loving  age,  his  prose  is  the  best  of  the 
sort  in  the  world,  and  exhibits  a  faithful  transcript  of  his 
own  healthy,  natural  mind,  and  cheerful,  innocent  tone 
of  conversation. 

D.  is  delightful  anywhere,  but  he  is  at  the  best  in  such 
places  as  these.  He  cares  not  much  for  Bath.  He  is 
out  of  his  element  at  Buxton,  at  Scarborough,  or  Harrow- 
gate.  The  Cam  and  the  Isis  are  to  him  "better  than  all 
the  waters  of  Damascus.' ■  On  the  muses'"  hill  he  is  happy, 
and  good,  as  one  of  the  shepherds  on  the  Delectable 


38  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

Mountains;  and  when  he  goes  about  witli  you  to  show 
you  the  halls  and  colleges,  you  think  you  have  with  you 
the  Interpreter  at  the  House  Beautiful. 

Note  that  in  the  description  from  Irving  and  also  in 
the  second  parai^raj)!!  of  the  selection  from  Lamb,  the 
arrangement,  whicli  consists  of  a  combination  of  both 
short  and  long  sentences,  is  more  pleasing  than  that  in 
either  of  the  remaining  paragraphs.  In  your  own  writ- 
ing, then,  try  to  avoid  using  either  kind  exclusively, 
but  aim  to  secure  variety. 

12  Variety  in  sentence  structure.  The  normal  order 
of  the  English  sentence  is  the  subject,  the  predicate 
verb,  and  the  object  or  attribute.  Each  of  these  ele- 
ments may  be  preceded  or  followed  by  mocUfiers.  This 
is  the  order  which  we  naturally  follow  in  most  simple, 
direct  statements,  having  but  one  subject  and  predi- 
cate. But  we  have  already  ob^^crvcd  that  the  long-con- 
tinued use  of  any  one  form  tends  to  fatigue  the  reader 
and  to  render  his  reading  less  entertaining  and  instruc- 
tive. Besides  the  simple  sentence,  however,  we  have 
two  other  forms,  the  complex  and  the  compound, 
which  provide  the  variation  necessary  for  smooth  and 
graceful  composition. 

The  complex  sentence  has  one  main  assertion,  and 
one  or  more  minor  statements  which  serve  to  amphfy 
or  round  out,  and  sometimes  to  complete,  the  meaning 
of  the  principal  assertion. 

The  compound  sentence  has  at  least  two  main  asser- 
tions; it  may  also  have  any  number  of  minor  or  de- 
pendent statements. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  39 

The  tumult  and  the  scuffle  were  at  an  end.  [Simple.] 
There  was  something  so  ludicrous  in  the  catastrophe 
of  this  learned  Pheban,  that  I  burst  into  an  immoderate 
fit  of  laughter,  which  broke  the  whole  illusion.  [Complex.] 
At  first  I  did  not  comprehend  him,  but  I  soon  found 
that  the  library  was  a  kind  of  literary  "preserve,"  sub- 
ject to  game  laws.     [Compound.] 

The  main  statements  of  the  compound  sentence  are 
connected  by  such  conjunctions  as  and,  but,  or,  etc. 
The  dependent  statements  are  introduced  by  the  rela- 
tives who,  which,  what,  that,  by  subordinate  connectives 
such  as  if,  although,  whe7i,  where,  etc.,  or  by  such  expres- 
sions as  the  following: 

by  which  \\ath  whom 

of  which  in  each  of  which 

whereby  wherein 

whose  a  thing  which 

by  whom  a  circumstance  that 

to  which  a  plan  which 

through  which  from  which 

to  whom  from  whom 

by  means  of  which  toward  whom 

near  which  seeing  whom 

under  which  fearing  which 

by  reason  of  which  knowing  that 

13  Unity.  Man}''  sentences  w^hich  are  composed  of 
statements  loosely  connected  by  "  ands  "  and  "  buts  " 
can  be  made  to  express  the  intended  meaning  much 
more  smoothly  and  clearly  if  they  are  reconstructed  by 
the  use  of  some  of  the  connecting  phrases  listed  above. 


40  FIRM-    VKAH    ENGLISH 

Especially  will  this  be  true  if  the  thought  connection  is 
close.  Whenever  the  thought  connection  is  not  close 
these  sentences  should  Ix?  separated  into  a  nuniixjr  of 
independent  sentences.  In  general,  the  complex  sent- 
ence denotes  closer  relation  between  the  statements 
than  does  the  compound.  The  latter,  however,  is  more 
easily  constructed  than  the  former,  and  the  student  is 
led  into  the  common  fault  of  making  too  frequent  use 
of  "  and"  and  "  but.  "  It  is  far  better  to  write  several 
short  sentences  in  succession  tiian  to  connect  several 
complete  statements  by  these  conjunctions.  Crowding 
too  many  thoughts  into  one  sentence  either  in  this  way 
or  by  placing  one  relative*  clause  after  another  destroys 
the  unity  or  "  oneness"  of  the  sentence. 

14  Coherence.  Besides  being  a  unit,  a  sentence 
should  also  be  coherent  or  clear.  One  of  the  most  com- 
mon faults  of  this  kind  consists  in  placing  a  phrase  out 
of  its  natural  order.  A  second  violation  of  coherence 
consists  in  leaving  the  reader  in  doubt  as  to  the  ante- 
cedent of  some  pronoun  in  the  sentence.  The  student 
should  try  to  make  his  meaning  so  clear  that  the  reader 
cannot  fail  to  grasp  it.  Often  a  very  ludicrous  meaning 
is  given  to  the  sentence  by  such  an  error. 

He  found  some  apples  on  the  trees  which  he  ate. 

When  my  sister  came  home  feeling  tired  I  laid  aside 
my  work  and  talked  to  her. 

The  city  is  situated  on  a  river  and  it  is  very  beautiful. 

Wanted  —  A  young  girl  to  care  for  baby,  white  or 
colored. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  41 


EXERCISE 

(1) 
Rewrite  the  following  sentences,  using  dependent  in- 
stead of  independent  constructions: 

One  summer  night  I  was  sitting  on  a  pier  and  I  watched  the 
steamboats  large  and  small  going  up  and  down. 

The  night  advances  and  all  becomes  peaceful  and  quiet. 

The  sun  had  just  risen  and  it  Ughted  up  what  had,  but  a 
moment  before,  been  dark  and  somber. 

Shylock  lends  money  and  he  charges  exorbitant  interest. 

At  evening  we  see  the  sun  gradually  sinking  behind  the 
mountains  and  it  appears  as  though  the  whole  sky  were  on  fire. 

His  employer  is  a  kind  old  gentleman  and  the  man  is  very 
rich. 

The  two  boys  were  alone  in  a  little  office  on  Walker  Street 
and  their  employer  had  already  left  for  his  home  and  his  home 
was  two  miles  away. 

She  passed  down  the  long  street  and  she  carried  her  chaplet 
of  beads  and  her  missal. 

Go  to  Priscilla  and  say  that  a  blunt  old  captain  offers  her  his 
hand  and  heart  and  he  is  a  man  of  actions  not  of  words. 

I-Jebecca  made  her  way  to  the  palfrey  of  the  Saxon  lady  and 
she  knelt  down. 

(2) 

Reconstruct  the  following,  dividing  it  into  three  sent- 
ences: 

Striking  a  full  blow  at  the  Templar,  the  knight  reined  back 
his  steed  and  in  this  way  he  escaped  the  charge  of  Athelstane 
and  Front-de-Boeuf,  and  when  their  aim  was  eluded,  these 
knights  rushed  up  from  opposite  sides,  almost  running  their 
horses  against  each  other  but  recovering  their  horses,  they 
continued  the  attack. 


42  i'lRST    VKAK    EN(iLISH 

(3) 

Rewrite  the  following;,  making  one  simple  sentence, 
one  complex  .sontoncc.  and  one  compound  sentence* 

Rip  was  a  groat  l;ivnntf  ;iiu(>n,i;  tlu*  good  wives  of  the  village. 
They  took  his  part  in  family  squabbles.  They  talked  these 
matters  over  in  their  evening  gossipings.  They  laid  the  blame 
on  Dame  Van  Winkle.  The  children  hailed  his  appearance 
with  joy.  He  helpetl  them  with  their  sports.  He  told  them 
long  stories  of  ghosts,  witches,  and  Indians.  There  was  a  great 
error  in  liip's  composition.  He  had  an  insuperable  aversion  to 
all  kinds  of  profitable  labor. 

(0 
Combine  tlie  following  statements  into  sentences  of 
considerable  length: 

.\mong  those  was  a  burly,  roaring,  roystering  blade.  His 
name  was  Abraham.  The  Dutch  abbreviation  for  .\braham 
was  Brom.  Brom  was  the  hero  of  the  country  roimd.  The 
country  rang  with  his  feats  of  strength  and  hardihood. 

It  was  a  fine  autumnal  day.  It  was  late  in  the  afternoon. 
Rip  wao  panting  and  fatigued.  He  threw  him.self  on  a  green 
knoll.     The  knoll  was  covered  with  mountain  herbage. 

Miss  Barker  provided  me  with  some  literature.  It  was  in 
the  shape  of  throe  or  four  handsomely  bound  fashion  books. 
They  were  at  least  ten  or  twelve  years  old.  She  put  a  httle 
table  and  a  candle  for  my  benefit.  She  said  young  people 
liked  to  look  at  pictures. 

John  Alden  rushed  into  the  open  air.  He  was  perplexed  and 
bewildered.  He  was  like  a  man  insane.  He  wandered  alone 
by  the  seaside  and  bared  his  head  to  the  east  wind.  He  was 
cooling  his  heated  brow. 

My  friend  was  unfortunate.  Ho  embarked  his  property  in 
large  speculations.     He  had  been  married  but  a  short  time.     \ 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  43 

succession  of  sudden  disastters  came.     His  fortune  was  swept 
from  him.     He  found  himself  reduced  to  poverty. 

He  wears  a  broad-brimmed  hat.  About  his  neck  is  a  huge 
roll  of  colored  handkerchief.  It  is  knotted  and  tucked  in  at 
the  bosom.  He  has  in  summer  time  a  large  bouquet  of  flowers. 
He  wears  his  bouquet  in  his  buttonhole.  It  is  probably  the 
present  of  some  enamored  country  lass. 

(5) 

Correct  the  following  violations  of  unity  by  rewriting 
in  short,  well-constructed  sentences: 

He  was  a  frequent  gunner  and  fisher;  he  sailed  his  boat  him- 
self; he  had  a  fine  one  presented  to  him  by  a  ship- joiner;  he  had 
fowling-pieces  presented  to  him  by  one  that  loved  him. 

He  was  six  feet  tall,  he  was  over  eighty  years  old,  his  sons 
were  massive,  clean,  bearded,  tan-faced,  handsome. 

Above  the  porch  rose  a  belfry  within  which  hung  a  weather- 
beaten  bell,  the  feeble  sounds, of  which  had  been  heard  by  the 
knight  who  had  lost  his  way  in  the  forest. 

The  river  that  flows  at  the  foot  of  the  garden  that  is  behind 
the  house  is  overhung  by  tall  elms  that  grow  on  its  banks. 

I  have  a  friend  who  knows  some  one  who  used  to  attend  your 
church. 

I  was  interested  in  the  book  that  you  loaned  me  and  it  was 
fascinating  and  I  was  sorry  when  I  finished  it. 

We  met  a  man  who  was  walking  along  the  path  that  leads  to 
the  rocks  which  are  at  the  water's  edge. 

Ivanhoe  is  a  very  interesting  book  which  treats  of  the  life  and 
times  of  Richard  the  Lion-Hearted  Avho  returned  to  England  in 
disguise  and  entered  the  tournament  and  there  he  fought  very 
bravely  in  behalf  of  Ivanhoe. 

The  children  are  going  to  the  country  and  some  ladies  are 
going  with  them  for  they  will  be  on  a  farm  which  is  near  a  lake 
and  there  are  swans  and  boats  which  the  children  will  be  allowed 


44  FIRST    YI'AU    F.Nlil.l^H 

tu  use  and  swings  and  games  and  plants  are  ull  around  and  I 
am  sure  ihey  will  have  a  good  time. 

My  uncle  who  is  an  old  man  asked  my  sister  w  ho  was  study- 
ing her  lesson  which  wus  very  difticult  to  go  to  the  store  for 
him  and  she  refused  and  niother  thought  that  she  was  disa- 
greeable but  I  said  that  it  was  eold  and  the  snow  was  deep  and 
I  did  not  think  that  she  ouglit  to  go. 

(«) 
Correct  the  following  violations  of  eoherenee: 

Ask  him  if  he  is  in  the  city  tu  let  me  know. 

Apply  this  cream  when  the  skin  is  perfectly  dry  niwl  rub  it 
until  it  disappears. 

PickiiiL:  \U)  lii'i-  bunille  with  muth  ditFi<  ulfy  .><he  resumed  Iht 
journe_\ 

The  >pt(tai')r  was  niieii  in  tiie  company  of  the  good  chap- 
lain during  his  visit  at  Coverley  Hall. 

Did  you  return  the  book  to  the  library  that  I  borrowed? 

Uncle  John  lent  me  his  gun  for  the  day  which  he  bought 
yesl^erday. 

Dr.  Goldsmith  traveled  on  foot  over  a  large  part  of  Europe 
and  it  was  very  difficult. 

The  mother  abandoned  her  child  who  seemed  utterly  heart- 
less. 

A  sermon  is  a  discourse  based  on  a  text  chosen  from  Scripture 
which  appeals  to  the  conscience. 

The  fruit  was  packed  in  a  box  wliich  we  ate  and  it  came 
from  California. 

Lost  — A  black  handbag  containing  two  letters  and  a  bunch 
of  keys  on  the  way  to  Troy. 

All  helped  themselves  to  the  contents  of  the  basket  includ- 
ing my  sister. 

Many  persons  were  poisoned  by  eating  fimgi  at  the  camps 
that  were  supposed  to  be  mushrooms. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  45 

He  had  a  small  head  and  large  green  glassy  eyes  which  was 
flat  at  the  top.  * 

It  is  a  little  house  with  a  vine  covering  the  front  which  was 
planted  by  former  tenants. 

.The  yellow  birds  left  the  nest  in  order  to  search  for  food 
which  was  then  quickly  destroyed  by  the  envious  catbirds. 

Being  in  a  distant  land  I  suppose  you  do  not  know  how  we 
spend  our  Friday  afternoons  in  school. 

\Vlien  the  baby  sister  was  taken  ill,  Mary  sent  for  Ella,  who 
came  after  she  was  dead  but  seemed  very  stiff  and  cold. 

Crane  used  to  quote  Cotton  Mather  to  us  until  we  were  tired 
of  him. 

15  Introductory  sentences.  Perhaps  one  of  the  most 
vexatious  problems  to  be  solved  in  writing  a  composi- 
tion is  the  question,  "  How  shall  I  begin  it?  "  Every 
composition  must  have  some  attempt  at  an  introduc- 
tory sentence,  or  else  it  sounds  blunt  and  awkward. 
In  this  capacity  the  complex  sentence  is  at  its  best. 
No  other  form  is  so  often  and  so  satisfactorily  used.  The 
dependent  clause  beginning  with  ichen,  since,  where,  why, 
etc.,  and  the  participial  constructions,  make  smooth 
and  pleasing  introductions.  If  the  sentence  is  long, 
or  if  two  or  more  sentences  have  an  introductory 
function,  we  often  set  them  apart  in  an  introductory 
paragraph,  the  purpose  of  wMch  is  to  give  the  reader 
an  idea  of  the  subject  of  the  composition.  Formal 
introductions  may  give  the  subject,  the  theme,  or 
some  idea  of  the  scope  of  the  work,  the  purpose  of 
the  author,  or  the  way  in  which  he  means  to  treat  his 
subject. 

For  instance,  the  subject  of  the  composition  following 
the   introductory  paragraph   given    below  is  William 


4'!  KIWM-    Vr.AK    KNt.IJSll 

Hamilton  Gibson;  tlio  tlirnio,  s(Mnc  account  of  his  life 
and  works.  Note  how  this  parhgraph  seeks  to  justify 
the  composition: 

Three  men  have  done  more  than  any  othei^s  to  iris|iire 
our  generation  with  the  love  of  nature.  They  are  Henry  D. 
Thorcan,  .Tolm  Burroughs,  and  William  Hamilton  Gibson. 
Thorcau.  when  the  generation  was  young,  challenged  it  to 
come  out  of  doors,  live  in  a  shanty,  and  see  as  much  of 
the  world  as  he  saw.  John  liurroughs.  in  later  years,  has 
acted  as  guide  to  a  multitiidc  of  minds,  eager  to  be  "jx)r- 
sonally  conducted  "  to  field  and  forest.  William  Hamilton 
Gibson,  besides  wimiing  many  feet  into  those  "highways 
and  byways"  whose  charms  he  taught  us  to  feel,  was 
fortunate  in  his  exceptional  power  to  bring  nature  to  the 
very  eyes  of  men  in  the  works  of  liis  i)encil,  with  which 
he  made  luminous  —  literally  "illustrated"  —  his  pages. 
This  alone  would  be  a  justification  of  some  account  of  his 
life  and  work. 

"  Abraham  Lincoln  "  is  the  subject  introduced  by 
the  following  paragraph.  The  book  is  a  story  in  which 
he  appears  "  a  true  picture  in  a  framework  of  fiction," 
while  the  purpose  of  the  composition  is  to  show  how  his 
character  was  formed.  Observe  how  the  subject  is 
introduced  and  the  purpose  of  the  work  briefly  stated 
in  a  single  sentence: 

Abraham  Lincoln  has  become  the  typical  character  of 
American  institutions,  and  it  is  the  purpose  of  this  book, 
which  is  a  true  picture  in  a  framework  of  fiction,  to  show 
how  that  character,  which  so  commanded  the  hearts  and 
confidence  of  men,  was  formed. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  47 

Other  ways  of  introducing  a  composition  are  (a)  by 
using  a  quotation,  followed  by  a  sentence  showing  how 
the  quotation  applies  to  the  subject  to  be  considered,  (6) 
by  using  a  direct  question,  (c)  by  plunging  directly  into 
the  subject  matter,  as  in  the  last  paragraph  quoted  above. 
Irving  in  his  Sketch  Book  heads  each  selection  with  an 
appropriate  quotation.  Such  long  quotations,  however, 
are  not  to  be  used  in  short  themes.  Unless  the  com- 
position is  very  long  an  introduction  should  not  con- 
tain over  fifty  or  seventy-five  words.  In  daily  themes 
of  one  page  be  careful  not  to  make  your  introduction 
too  long;  one  well-constructed  sentence  is  usually 
sufficient.     Study  carefully  the  selections  given  below 

Sera  tamen  respexit. 
Libertas. 

—  Virgil, 

A  clerk  I  was  in  London  gay.  —  O'Keefb. 

If  perad venture,  Reader,  it  has  been  thy  lot  to  waste 
the  golden  years  of  thy  life,  thy  shining  youth,  in  the  irk- 
some confinement  of  an  office;  to  have  thy  prison  days 
prolonged  through  middle  age  down  to  decrepitude  and 
silver  hairs,  without  hope  of  release  or  respite;  to  have 
lived  to  forget  that  there  are  such  things  as  holidays  or 
to  remember  them  but  as  the  prerogatives  of  childhood; 
then,  and  then  only,  will  you  be  able  to  appreciate  my 

deliverance. 

Lamb. 

The  above  selection  shows  the  way  in  which  Lamb 
introduces  his  essay,  The  Superannuated  Man.  In  this 
case,  however,  the  quotations  are  not  properly  a  part 


48  FIRST    VKAK    ENGLISH 

of  the  introduction  itself,  but  arc  apiMopriatfly  applied 
to  the  whole  cs^ay.  Notice  that  the  autlior  addresses 
the  reader  directly  ami  writes  in  the  first  person. 

In  the  following  sentence,  which  forms  a  brief  intro- 
duction to  Bacon's  PJssay  on  l''rictidtihi}>,  the  (juotation 
us  a  part  of  tiie  composition: 

It  had  been  hard  for  him  that  spake  it  to  have  put 
more  truth  ami  untruth  together  in  few  words  than  in 
that  speech.  "  \Vhoso(!ver  is  delitihted  in  solitude  is  either 
a  wild  beast  or  :i  (uxl." 

Notice  that  in  both  of  the  preceding  selections  as 
well  as  in  the  following,  which  is  the  opening  sentence 
of  The  Legend  of  Sleepy  Hollow,  the  sense  of  the  sen- 
tence is  not  completed  until  the  end  is  nearly  reached. 
The  sentence  could  not  be  brought  to  a  close  l)efore 
the  word  "  port"  is  reached.  This  method  of  dispos- 
ing of  time  and  place  expressions,  or  participial  phrases, 
by  placing  them  at  the  beginning  before  the  main  state- 
ment, is  worthy  of  imitation: 

In  the  bosom  of  one  of  those  spacious  coves  which 
indent  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Hudson,  at  that  broad 
expansion  of  the  river  denominated  by  the  ancient  navi- 
gators the  Tappaan  Zee,  and  where  they  always  pru- 
dently shortened  sail,  and  implored  the  protection  of  St. 
Nicholas  when  they  crossed,  there  lies  a  small  market 
town  or  rural  port,  which  by  some  is  called  Greensburgh. 
but  which  is  more  generally  and  properly  known  by  the 
name  of  Tarrytown. 


WRITTEN    COMPOSITION  49 

The  following  introductions  suggest  the  time  and 
place  of  the  action,  and  introduce  the  principal  char- 
acters: 


And  the  first  gray  of  morning  filled  the  east, 

And  the  fog  rose  out  of  the  Oxus  stream. 

But  all  the  Tartar  camp  along  the  stream 

Was  hushed,  and  still  the  men  were  plunged  in  sleep. 

Sohrab  alone,  he  slept  not;  all  night  long 

He  had  lain  wakeful,  tossing  on  his  bed: 

But  when  the  gray  dawn  stole  into  his  tent, 

He  rose,  and  clad  himself,  and  girt  his  sword. 

And  took  his  horseman's  cloak,  and  left  his  tent, 

And  went  abroad  into  the  cold  wet  fog, 

Through  the  dim  camp  to  Peran-Wisa's  tent. 

Arnold,  Sohrab  and  Rustum 


Long  lines  of  cliff  breaking  have  left  a  chasm; 
And  in  the  chasm  are  foam  and  yellow  sands; 
Beyond,  red  roofs  about  a  narrow  wharf 
In  cluster;  then  a  moulder'd  church;  and  higher 
A  long  street  climbs  to  one  tall-tower'd  mill; 
And  high  in  heaven  behind  it  a  gray  down 
With  Danish  barrows;  and  a  hazel  wood, 
By  autumn  nutters  haunted,  flourishes 
Green  in  a  cuplike  hollow  of  the  down. 

Here  on  this  beach  a  hundred  years  ago, 
Three  children  of  three  houses,  Annie  Lee, 
The  prettiest  little  damsel  in  the  port, 
And  Philip  Ray,  the  miller's  only  son, 


50  lIKsr    VKAH    ENtiLISU 

And  Enoch  Arden,  a  rough  SKilor'is  lad 
Made  orphan  by  a  winter  shipwreck,  play'd 
Among  the  waste  and  lumber  of  the  shore, 
Hard  coils  of  cordage,  swarthy  fishing-nets, 
Anchors  of  rusty  fluke,  and  boats  updrawn. 

Tennyson,  Enoch  Arden. 

Hawthorne,  in  Peler  Guldthwaites  Trcamre,  plunges 
directly  into  the  story  by  introducing  conversation  in 
the  form  of  direct  cjuestions : 

"And  so,  Peter,  you  won't  even  consider  of  the  busi- 
ness?" said  Mr.  John  Brown,  buttoning  his  surtout  over 
the  snug  rotundity  of  his  person,  and  drawing  on  his 
gloves.  "  You  positively  refuse  to  let  me  have  this  crazy 
old  house,  and  the  land  under  and  adjoining,  at  the  price 
named?" 

i6  Concluding  sentences.  If  the  question  first  to 
be  considered  is  that  of  a  proper  beginning,  no  less 
important  is  the  problem  of  a  conclusion.  In  a  short 
theme  no  more  than  one  sentence  is  needed ;  in  a  longer 
composition  a  paragraph  is  usually  devoted  to  this 
purpose.  Here  again  the  complex  sentence  and  the 
participial  construction  may  be  brought  into  use  with 
good  effect.  Many  authors  of  long  stories  or  of  books 
both  begin  and  end  with  quotations.  If  the  quotation 
is  apt  and  pithy,  its  use  is  to  be  recommended,  but  for 
short  compositions  its  use  is  too  stilted  and  roundabout 
to  be  tolerated. 

As  in  most  introductions  the  writer  necessarily  tries 
to  lead  up  to  the  subject  to  be  considered,  so  in  most 


WRITTEN   COMPOSITION  51 

conclusions  he  endeavors  to  look  back  over  the  matter 
presented  and  to  give  a  summing  up  or  a  result  of  what 
has  been  told  in  the  body  of  the  composition.  In  daily 
themes  of  from  one  to  two  hundred  words,  however,  no 
formal  summary  is  needed;  a  single  sentence  is  usually 
sufficient. 

The  following  synopsis  of  Hawthorne's  ''  David  Swan  " 
will  serve  to  illustrate  how  the  author  in  his  concluding 
paragraph  gives  a  brief  summing  up  of  the  story  he  has 
related  and  fastens  it  in  our  minds  by  drawing  a  moral 
from  it : 

David  Swan  at  the  age  of  twenty  started  on  the  high  road 
from  his  native  place  in  New  Hampshire  to  the  city  of  Boston, 
where  his  uncle,  a  small  dealer  in  the  grocery  line,  was  to  take 
him  behind  the  counter.  After  journeying  on  foot  from  sunrise 
until  nearly  noon,  he  stopped  under  the  shade  of  a  tuft  of 
maples  and  lay  down  to  await  the  coming  of  the  stage-coach. 
And  this  is  what  befell  him.  Wliile  he  lay  sound  asleep  in  the 
shade,  many  people  passing  to  and  fro  looked  in  upon  him, 
among  them  an  elderly  merchant  and  his  wife  whose  carriage 
had  broken  down  near  the  spot.  Being  attracted  by  the  inno- 
cence and  open  countenance  of  the  sleeper,  they  discussed  the 
advisabihty  of  taking  him  into  their  home  of  luxury  to  fill  the 
place  which  had  been  left  vacant  by  the  death  of  their  only  son. 
Their  coach  was  ready,  however,  before  they  came  to  any  con- 
clusion, and  they  left  David  to  enjoy  his  nap  unmolested. 
Scarcely  had  they  gone  when  a  pretty  young  girl  came  along 
and  turned  aside  into  the  shelter  of  the  maple  trees,  where  she 
found  the  young  man  asleep  »by  the  spring.  She  was  about  to 
hurry  away,  when  she  noticed  a  monster  of  a  bee  about  to  settle 
on  the  eyelid  of  David  Swan.  Having  driven  the  bee  away 
with  her  handkerchief,  she  Ungered  to  become  deeply  infatuated 
with  the  sleeping  youth,  but  she  did  not  awaken  him  ;  she  left 


S2  VIKST    YKAU    ENCLISH 

him  with  the  lovp  in  her  heart  uns|)oken.  She,  in  tnrn,  was 
hardly  out  of  sijjjht  when  two  villains,  who  lived  by  whatever 
the  devil  sent  them,  stumbled  upon  David's  hiding  place.  They 
had  planned  to  kill  and  rob  him  of  whatever  funds  he  might 
haj)pen  to  have,  when  they  were  interrupted  by  a  doc,  which 
ramc  in  beneath  the  maple  trees.  Thinkiiip  that  the  dog's  mas- 
ter must  be  close  behind,  they  made  (juickly  off.  Unconscious  of 
all  that  was  going  on  about  him,  David  slept  soundly  on  until, 
his  wearines.s  l)eing  over,  he  was  awakened  by  the  sound  of  the 
stage-coach  upon  the  road. 

And  tluMi  tilt'  autlioi-  conclinlcs  : 

Up  mounted  David,  and  l>()\vlfd  away  merrily  towards  Bos- 
ton, without  so  much  as  a  parting  glance  at  that  fountain  of 
dreamlike  vicissitude.  He  knew  not  that  a  phantom  of  Wealth 
had  thrown  a  golden  hue  upon  its  waters  —  nor  that  one  of  Love 
had  sighed  .softly  to  their  murmur  —  nor  that  one  of  Death  had 
threatened  to  crimson  them  with  his  blood  —  all,  in  the  brief 
hour  since  he  lay  down  to  sleep.  Sleeping  or  waking,  we  hear 
not  the  airy  footsteps  of  the  strange  things  that  almost  hapj^en. 
Does  it  not  argue  a  superintending  Providence,  that,  while  view- 
less and  unexpected  events  thrust  them.selves  continually  athwart 
our  path,  there  should  still  be  regularity  enough,  in  mortal  life, 
to  render  foresight  even  partially  available  ? 

The  following  is  .sufficient  conclusion  for  a  short  theme 
giving  an  account  of  the  ancient  mariner's  rescue  by 
the  pilot  and  the  hermit : 

Then  the  ancient  mariner  was  shriven  by  the  holy 
hermit,  but  he  was  not  wholly  free  of  penance,  for  he 
was  compelled  at  times  to  tell  his  story  to  certain  persons 
whom  he  was  given  power  to  recognize. 


WRITTEN  COMPOSITION 


EXERCISE 


(1) 
Tell  \vhy  the  conclusion  of  Macaulay's  Horatius  is  a 
good  one. 

(2) 
Show   how   the    conclusion   of   one    of    the    following 
completes  the  general  plan  of  the  story;  point  out  the 
moral   and    a   result  of   the   stor}?-  told    in    The  Ancient 
Mariner  or  The  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal. 

(3) 
Write  an  introductory  sentence  and  a  concluding  sen- 
tence for  a  short   theme  on  "Black   Auster  in  Battle," 
" Life-in-Death    Wins   the    Ancient   Mariner/'  or  "The 
Second  Meeting  of  Sir  Launfal  and  the  Leper." 

(4) 
Write  an  introductory  sentence  for  a  short  theme  de- 
scribing the  personal  appearance  of  one  of  your  acquaint- 
ances. 

(5) 
What  word  in  the  next  to  the  last  stanza  of  Browning's 
Tray  given  on  pages  32,  33  refers  to  the  introduction  and 
thus  rounds  out  the  story? 

17  Length  of  paragraphs.  Most  short  themes  of  one 
page  need  have  but  one  paragraph,  or  at  most  a  short 
introduction  with  a  long  paragraph  following.  Li  para- 
graphing, the  following  directions  should  be  observed, 

1  Do  not  make  too  many  paragraphs.  It  is  better 
to  write  a  paragraph  two  pages  in  length  than  to  indent 
foT  every  sentence. 


54  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

2  In  reporting  direct  conversation,  put  the  speech  of 
each  person  in  a  paragraph  by  itself. 

3  Remember  that  each  paragraph  should  have  one 
central  thought  or  topic;  all  the  sentences  in  that  para- 
graph should  in  some  respect  bear  upon  that  main  theme. 

i8  Notes.  Unless  one  has  a  remarkable  memory 
the  taking  of  notes  is  an  invaluable  aid  in  composition. 
Notes  are  guide  posts  on  tlie  road  to  composition. 
Suppose  you  make  a  visit  to  a  foundry  with  a  view  to 
writing  a  sketch  for  class  room  work.  You  would  per- 
haps be  unable  to  remember  all  the  successive  steps 
and  minute  details  of  the  process  of  casting  unless  you 
should  take  notes  on  the  spot.  Most  good  writers  have 
followed  this  plan.  Whenever  you  find  a  particularly 
happy  expression,  a  word  that  gives  the  precise  shade 
of  meaning  that  you  desire,  write  it  down.  WTienever 
you  make  an  interesting  visit  to  a  noted  or  beautiful 
place,  put  on  paper  the  points  that  seem  to  you  most 
worthy  of  notice.  If  you  see  a  fine  picture,  enter  in  your 
note  book  a  brief  description  of  the  details,  and  the 
impression  it  made  upon  you. 

Complete  sentences  are  not  needed;  hasty  note- 
taking  necessitates  abbreviation. 

Rode  around  the  lake  —  quiet  —  trees  mirrored  in 
water  —  sailboat  at  upper  end  —  sails  flapped  lazily  — 
two  men  fishing,  etc. 

Remember  that  the  first  requisite  to  really  good 
WTiting  is  clear  seeing,  but  inasmuch  as  we  may  not  be 
able  at  the  time  of  writing  to  recall  exactly  the  details 
we  desire,  we  need,  in  such  case,  the  prompting  that 
good  notes  can  offer. 


WRITTEN   COMPOSITION  55 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Visit  some  place  of  historical  interest  near  you,  writing 
down  the  items  that  you  noticed  particularly. 

(2) 
Note  the  details  that    impress  you  while  watching  a 
beautiful  sunset. 

(3) 
Observe   some    beautiful    picture,    writing   down    the 
points   that   you   most   admire  •  and   the   thoughts   that 
occur  to  you  while  looking  at  it. 

(4) 
Visit  a  factory  or  a  shop  where  some  article  is  made; 
note  the  successive  steps  in  the  process. 

(5) 
Note  the  different  objects  and  incidents  observed  during 
a  walk  or  ride. 

(6) 
Take  notes  of  a  lecture  or  sermon  that  you  attend. 
Put  down  the  main  heads  of  the  address,  and  perhaps 
enough  under  each  division  to  recall  to  you  the  illustra- 
tions given.  Also  write  at  the  end  the  conclusion  or 
inference  that  the  speaker  draws. 

IQ  Outlines.  Notes  upon  any  one  subject  form, 
when  properly  arranged,  a  topical  outline.  The  follow- 
ing method  is  useful  for  arranging: 

Write  on  separate  slips  of  paper  the  main  thoughts  to 
be  told  in  the  composition;  also  the  minor  details  to  be 
brought  in  under  each  topic.  Place  in  one  group  all 
those  bearing  upon  any  one  central  thought.    Then 


50  FlUsr    YKAlt    KNtiLISll 

arrange  the  groups  in  wliatevcr  yuu  lliink  is  the  best 
order  and  number  them  I,  II,  III,  I\',  etc.  Sort  the 
sUps  in  each  group  and  number  them  I,  2,  .'3,  etc.  .Ax- 
range  the  sHps  of  the  first  group  in  the  following  manner 
and  copy : 

1   Central  or  main  thought. 

1    Details  to  he  mentioned. 

I'roctrd  in  this  wise  witii  all  the  groups.  When  you 
have  finished  copying  you  will  have  a  topical  outhne 
for  your  composition.  Each  of  the  main  cUvisions,  or 
groups,  I,  II,  III,  etc.,  should  represent  a  paragraph  or 
one  topic  of  the  composition,  while  1,  2,  3,  etc.,  denote 
the  details  to  be  mentioned  in  that  paragraph.  Observe 
carefully  the  form  of  the  following  outline: 

At  the  Time  of  the  Spring  Floods 

I    Introduction  —  Time  and  place. 

1  Narrow  valley  containing  stream. 

2  Spring  of  year. 

3  Heavy  rains  and  melting  snow. 

4  River  a  deep,  black  torrent. 

11    Mary  Hartwick  discovers  the  coiidition  of  the  old 
railroad  bridge. 

1  Has  been  staying  with  a  sick  neighbor  below 

the  bridge. 

2  Hurrying  home  late  at  night. 

3  Sees  water  rising. 

4  Hears  a  crash. 

5  Truth    flashes    over    her  —  part    of    bridge 

swept  away. 


WRITTEN   COMPOSITION  57 

III  She  remembers  that  the  express  is  soon  due  and 

hurries  home  for  lantern. 

1  Shps  and  falls. 

2  Limps  on  —  so  slowly,  she  thinks. 

3  Finds  her  husband  gone  from  home. 

4  Lantern  out  of  place. 

5  Finally  hurries  out  with  lighted  lantern. 

IV  She  saves  the  train. 

1  Hears  the  shriek  of  the  whistle. 

2  Faster  she  hurries. 

3  Reaches  end  of  bridge  as  headlight  appears. 

4  Waves  lantern  —  Will  they  see  in  time? 

5  Train    slackens    and    stops    two    feet    from 

bridge. 
V  Conclusion  —  Her  reward. 

1  Passengers  and  trainmen   crowd   about   the 

fainting  woman. 

2  Man  appears  and  takes  her  in  his  arms. 

3  Her  husband,  unexpectedly  called  away,  was 

on  train  she  saved. 


EXERCISE 

Let  the  teacher  develop  by  skillful  questioning  of  the 
class  enough  material  for  a  brief  composition  suggested 
by  the  following  hints;  the  class  should  then  arrange  in 
order  the  material  gathered,  making  a  topical  outline  on 
the  blackboard;  finally  let  members  of  the  class  give 
orally  in  complete  statements  the  facts  grouped  in  each 
paragraph: 

Boys  —  boat  —  accident  —  dog. 

The  story  may  then  be  written  for  a  subsequent  lesson. 


58  FIRST    YKAK    ENGLISH 

Topical  outlines  of  selections  alivudy  written  should 
also  be  made.  These  are  really  thought  analyses;  the 
process  is  a  dissecting  of  the  composition.  This  is, 
however,  much  easier  than  forming  an  original  outline, 
for  the  order  of  the  tiioughts  is  fi.xed.  Study  the  follow- 
ing selection  and  its  outline.  Notice  the  correspond- 
ence between  each  paragraph  of  the  text  and  each 
main  division  of  the  outline.  Note,  too,  how  each 
paragraph  takes  up  only  one  phase  of  the  description, 
antl  how  the  conclusion  completes  the  whole  by  refer- 
ring to  the  balcony  which  is  mentioned  in  the  intro- 
duction. 

In  Gr.\n.\d.\ 

I  occasionally  amused  myself  with  noting  from  my 
balcony  the  gradual  changes  of  the  scenes  below,  accord- 
ing to  the  different  stages  of  the  day. 

Scarce  has  the  gray  dawn  streaked  tiie  sky,  and  the 
earliest  cock  crowed  from  the  cottages  of  the  hillside, 
when  the  suburbs  give  sign  of  reviving  animation;  for 
the  fresh  hours  of  dawning  are  precious  in  the  summer 
season  in  a  sultry  climate.  All  are  anxious  to  get  the 
start  of  the  sun,  in  the  business  of  the  day.  The  muleteer 
drives  forth  his  loaded  train  for  the  journey;  the  traveler 
slings  his  carbine  behind  his  saddle  and  mounts  his  steed 
at  the  gate  of  the  hostel;  the  brown  peasant  from  the 
country  urges  forward  his  loitering  beasts,  laden  with 
panniers  of  sunny  fruit  and  fresh  dewy  vegetables,  for 
already  the  thrifty  housewives  are  hastening  to  the 
market. 

The  sun  is  up  and  sparkles  along  the  valley,  tipping 
the  transparent  foliage  of  the  groves.     The  matin  bells 


WRITTEN  COMPOSITION  59 

resound  melodiously  through  the  pure  bright  air,  an- 
nouncing the  hour  of  devotion.  The  muleteer  halts  his 
burdened  animals  before  the  chapel,  thrusts  his  staff 
through  his  belt  behind,  and  enters  with  hat  in  hand, 
smoothing  his  coal  black  hair,  to  hear  a  mass  and  to  put 
up  a  prayer  for  a  prosperous  wayfaring  across  the  sierra. 
And  now  steals  forth  on  fairy  foot  the  gentle  senora, 
with  restless  fan  in  hand  and  dark  eye  flashing  from 
beneath  the  gracefully  folded  mantilla;  she  seeks  some 
well-frequented  church  to  offer  up  her  morning  ori- 
sons. .  .  . 

As  the  morning  advances,  the  din  of  labor  augments 
on  every  side;  the  streets  are  thronged  with  man  and 
steed  and  beast  of  burden,  and  there  is  a  hum  and  mur- 
mur, like  the  surges  of  the  ocean. 

As  the  sun  ascends  to  his  meridian,  the  hum  and  bustle 
gradually  decline;  at  the  hight  of  noon  there  is  a  pause. 
The  panting  city  sinks  into  lassitude,  and  for  several 
hours  there  is  a  general  repose.  The  windows  are  closed, 
the  curtains  drawn,  the  inhabitants  retired  into  the 
coolest  recesses  of  their  mansions;  .  .  .  the  peasant  and 
the  laborer  sleep  beneath  the  trees  of  the  Alameda, 
lulled  by  the  sultry  chirping  of  the  locust.  The  streets 
are  deserted,  except  by  the  water  carrier,  who  refreshes 
the  ear  by  proclaiming  the  merits  of  his  sparkling  bever- 
age, "colder  than  the  mountain  snow." 

As  the  sun  declines,  there  is  again  a  gradual  reviving, 
and  v-V.pn  the  vesper  bell  rings  out  his  sinking  knell,  all 
nature  seems  to  rejoice  that  the  tyrant  of  the  day  has 
fallen.  Now  begins  the  bustle  of  enjoyment,  when  the 
citizens  pour  forth  to  breathe  the  evening  air,  and  revel 
away  the  brief  twilight  in  the  walks  and  gardens. 

As   night   closes,   the   capricious   scene   assumes   new 


60  FIRST   YEAR    KM.l.lMl 

features.  Light  after  liglit  gradually  twinkles  forth; 
here  a  taper  from  a  balconied  window;  there  a  votive 
lamp  before  the  image  of  a  saint.  Thus,  by  degrees,  the 
city  emerges  from  the  pervading  gloom,  and  sparkles 
with  scattered  lights  like  the  starry  firmament.  Now 
break  forth  from  court  and  garden,  and  street  and  lane, 
the  tinkling  of  innumerable  guitars,  and  the  clicking  of 
castanets,  blending,  at  this  lofty  hight.  in  u  faint  but 
general  concert. 

Irvi.no,  The  Alhambru. 

TOPICAL    (JLTLINE 
In  (iRW.vda 

1    Introduction. 

1  Point  of  view  —  balcony. 

2  (leneral   thought  of  whole  —  scenes   at   dif- 

ferent stages  of  the  day. 
II    Busy  stir  of  early  summer  morning  before  sunri.se. 

1  Cock  crow. 

2  Reasons  for  early  rising  —  hot  climate,  etc. 

3  Muleteer  with  train. 

4  Traveler  on  steed. 

5  Peasant  with  produce  for  market. 
Ill   Sunrise  and  devotional  hour. 

1  Effect  of  svmrise. 

2  Ringing  of  matin  bells. 

3  Devotional  hour. 

(a)  muleteer. 
(6)  senora. 
IV   As  the  morning  advances   business    increases  in 
streets. 

1  Men,  horses,  beasts  of  burden. 

2  Hum  and  murmur  of  trafTic. 


WKITTEN  COMPOSITION  61 

V   Decline  of  business  at  noon  and  the  stillness  of 
afternoon. 
1    Hum  of  business  decreases. 
.   2   General  repose. 

3  Windows  shut. 

4  Curtains  drawn. 

5  Inhabitants  in  houses. 

6  Peasants  asleep  in  parks. 

7  Streets  deserted. 

VI   Gradual  revival  of  life  at  sundown. 

1  Vesper  bells. 

2  Nature  rejoices. 

3  Bustle  of  enjoyment  —  citizens  come  out  to 

enjoy  evening  air  and  twilight. 
VII   Scene  as  night  closes  —  new  features. 

1  Lights. 

(a)  taper. 

(6)  votive  lamp. 

2  Music. 

(a)  guitars. 

(b)  castanets. 

3  Conclusion. 

The  phrase  at  this  lofty  hight  rounds  out 
and  completes  the  whole  by  referring 
to  the  introduction. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Make  topical  outhnes  of  at  least  two  chapters  from  one 
of  the  books  you  have  read  this  year.  [The  following  are 
suggested:  Walden,  Chaps.  VIII  and  IX;  Treasure  Island, 
Chaps.  II  and  XXVI;  Ivanhoe,  Chaps.  XII  and  XLII; 
Quentin  Durward,  Chaps.  XXI  and  XXXV.] 


G2  FIRST   YKAK    KNT.LISH 

(2) 
Write  the  story,  "At  the  Time  of  the  Spring  Floods," 
as  outlined  on  pages  56,  57,  making  the  paragraphs  in  the 
composition  correspond  to  the  divisions  indicated  in  the 
outline. 

(3) 
Make  a  topical  outline  for  a  brief  account  of  one  of  the 
following  topics  from  American  history,  giving  causes  in 
the  introduction  and   results  in  the  conclusion:  War  of 
1812-14,  Mexican  War,  Spanish-American  War. 


CHAPTER  III 

REVIEW  OF   CAPITALIZATION   AND  PUNCTUATION 

Do  not  think  that  the  knowledge  of  any  particular  subject 
cannot  be  improved  merely  because  it  has  lain  wnthout  improve- 
ment.    Watts. 

20  Use.  In  the  preceding  chapter  the  use  of  capi- 
tals and  punctuation  were  mentioned  as  being  valuable 
aids  to  the  interpretation  of  written  composition. 
Formerly  punctuation  marks  were  freely  used  to  indi- 
cate pauses  to  be  observed  in  reading.  The  tendency 
at  present,  however,  is  away  from  the  liberal  use  of 
punctuation  marks,  especially  of  commas.  In  general 
we  may  say  that  only  such  marks  are  used  as  will  render 
the  meaning  of  the  wTiter  easily  and  unmistakably 
clear.  The  importance  of  accuracy  in  punctuation  can- 
not be  too  strongly  urged.  Not  only  is  it  an  evidence 
of  good  scholarship,  but  there  have  been  many  cases  in 
which  large  fortunes  or  other  momentous  questions  have 
hung  upon  the  omission  or  insertion  of  a  comma  or 
upon  the  determination  of  whether  a  particular  mark 
was  intended  for  a  comma  or  a  period. 

In  the  follo"\^dng  paragraphs  notice  how  much  easier 
it  is  to  grasp  the  thought  of  the  second  paragraph  than 
of  the  first  where  capitals  and  punctuation  marks  are 
omitted, 

father  father  exclaimed  a  piercing  cry  from  out  the 
mist  it  is  i  alice  thy  own  elsie  spare  oh  save  your  daugh- 

63 


04  FIKST    VEAK    KNGLlSH 

ters  hold  shouted  the  former  speaker  in  the  tiwful  tones 
of  parental  agony  the  sound  reaching  even  to  the  woods 
and  rolling  back  in  solemn  echo 

"  Father,  father!  "  exclaimed  a  piercing  cry  from  out 
the  mist,  "  it  is  I,  Alice,  thy  own  Elsie!  Spare,  oh.  save 
your  daughters!  "  "  Hold,"  shouted  the  former  speaker 
in  tones  of  parental  agony,  the  sound  reaching  even  to 
the  woods  and  rolling  back  in  solemn  echo. 

The  usage  of  tliese  signs,  which  is  on  the  whole  an 
outgrowth  of  common  sense  and  convenience,  is  now 
embodied  in  certain  more  or  less  firmly  established  rules 
for  punctuation  and  capitalization. 

21  Rules  for  capitalization.  Tlie  following  are  the 
general  rules  for  the  u.-^e  of  capitals: 

1  A  capital  shoukl  be  used  to  begin  the  first  word  of 
a  sentence. 

When  you  are  ready,  we  shall  begin. 

2  A  capital  should  be  used  to  begin  the  first  word  of 
every  line  of  poetry. 

Sigh  no  more,  ladies,  sigh  no  more, 

Men  were  deceivers  ever; 
One  foot  on  sea  and  one  on  shore, 

To  one  thing  constant  never. 

3  The  first  word  of  a  direct  quotation  making  com- 
plete sense  should  begin  with  a  capital. 

The  boy  asked,  "Don't  you  think  it's  time  for  father 
to  be  here?" 


REVIEW    OF    CAPITALIZATION   AND    PUNCTUATION        65 

4  Prop>er  names,  including  names  of  the  Deity  and 
words  derived  from  them,  should  begin  with  capitals. 
[See  special  rules  below.] 

England,  English,  Mary,  Queen  Elizabeth,  Jehovah. 

5  Most  abbreviations  should  begin  with  capitals. 
A.M.  (master  of  arts)     Mr     a.m.    (forenoon). 

6  A  capital  should  be  used  to  begin  phrases  and 
clauses  used  as  separate  headings. 

Words  and  their  uses. 

7  The  pronoun  I  and  the  interjection  0  are  always 
capitals. 

8  The  letters  used  in  Roman  notation  are  usually 
capitals.  Small  letters,  however,  are  often  used  in  refer- 
ring to  chapters,  sections,  etc.,  and  are  nearly  always 
used  in  numbering  the  pages  of  a  preface. 

Chap.  VIII  or  chap,  viii,  but  Louis  XIV. 

The  following  special  rules  for  proper  nanies  should 
be  observed: 

1  The  tendency  at  present  is  to  omit  capitals  in 
writing  class  names  of  places.^ 

New  York  city,  city  of  New  York,  Atlantic  ocean. 
Fifth  avenue,  Adirondack  mountains,  State  street,  Mis- 
sissippi river. 

We  sometimes  speak  of  the  Atlantic,  the  Mississippi, 
etc.,  without  using  the  class  word,  but  in  names  like 

*  This  usage  is  in  accordance  with  the  editing  rules  of  the 
New  York  State  Education  Department. 


tit)  FIKST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

Lake  George,  Lake  Ontariu.  Long  Lslaial,  Kansas  City, 
etc.,  the  class  name  is  never  omitted.  It  has  there- 
fore become  a  part  of  a  compound  name  and  is  capital- 
ized according  to  the  following  rule: 

2  The  parts  of  a  compound  projKT  name  are  always 
capitaUzed,  as  arc  also  the  titles  of  people  when  they 
precede,  but  not  when  they  follow,  the  name. 

John  Quincy  Adams,  Daniel  Webster,  President  Roose- 
velt, General  Jackson,  Roosevelt,  president  of  the  United 
States.  Holy  Bible. 

3  In  writing  the  titles  of  books,  poems,  etc.,  and 
the  names  of  the  Deity,  only  the  important  words  begin 
with  capitals. 

Holy  One  of  Israel,  When  Knighthood  was  in  Flower, 
Hanging  of  the  Crane. 

Still  more  radical  is  the  use  in  libraries,  where,  in 
writing  the  names  of  books  for  catalogues  and  indexing, 
only  the  first  word  is  begun  witli  a  capital. 

Decline  and  fall  of  the  Roman  empire. 
The  winning  of  the  west. 

This,  however,  is  too  far  in  advance  of  the  present 
use  for  the  student  to  follow\ 

In  general  it  may  be  said  that  for  every  use  of  a 
capital  letter  there  must  be  a  sufficient  reason.  There 
was  a  time  when,  for  the  sake  of  bringing  the  important 
ideas  prominently  forward,  every  noun  in  the  sentence 
was  capitalized.  In  the  German  language  this  is  still 
the  rule.     In  English,  however,  the  movement  is  con- 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION   AND  PUNCTUATION       67 

stantly  away  from  the  abundant  use  of  capitals.  Indeed 
a  too  liberal  use  of  them  is  quite- as  bad  as  the  failure  to 
use  them  where  they  are  necessary. 

EXERCISE 

Give  a  reason  for  the  use  of  each  capital  in  the  fol- 
lowing: 

(1) 
Omaha,   Nebraska,   June  10.     A  severe  storm  swept  over 
James  and  Pike  counties  yesterday  at  three  o'clock,  killing 
thirteen  persons  and  seriously  injuring  twenty-one.     Two  small 
villages,  Canton  and  Fairburn,  were  completely  destroyed. 
New  York  Herald. 

(2) 
Many  parts  of  the  Pilgrim's  Progress,  such  as  the  combat 
with  Apollyon,  would  seem  forced  if  we  did  not  remember  the 
spiritual  meaning  of  the  bluntly  told  sto^5^  The  same  is  true 
of  those  passages  in  Spenser's  Faery  Queene  that  tell  of  enchant- 
ments and  monsters.     Cairns. 

(3) 
And  in  languages  so  mongrel  in  breed  as  the  English,  there 
is  a  fatal  power  of  equivocation  put  into  men's  hands,  almost 
whether  they  will  or  no,  in  being  able  to  use  Greek  or  Latin 
words  for  an  idea  when  they  want  it  to  be  awful;  and  Saxon 
or  otherwise  common  words  when  they  want  it  to  be  vulgar. 
What  a  singular  and  salutary  effect,  for  instance,  would  be 
produced  on  the  minds  of  people  who  are  in  the  habit  of  taking 
the  form  of  the  "Word"  they  live  by,  for  the  power  of  which 
that  Word  tells  them,  if  we  had  always  either  retained,  or  re- 
fused, the  Greek  form  "  biblos  "  or  "  bibUon  "  as  the  right  ex- 
pression for  "book"  —  instead  of  employing  it  only  in  the 
one  instance  in  which  we  wish  to  give  dignity  to  the  idea,  and 
translating  it  into  English  everywhere  else.     How  wholesome 


68  FIRST    YI.AK    ENGLISH 

it  would  be  for  many  simple  persons  if,  in  such  places  (for  in- 
stance) as  Acts  xix  19,  we  retaineil  the  (Jreek  expression  instead 
of  translating  it,  and  they  had  to  read,  "  Many  of  them  also  which 
used  curious  arts,  brought  their  Bibles  together  and  burnt 
them  before  all  men;  and  they  counted  the  price  of  them,  and 
found  it  fifty  thousand  pieces  of  silver!"  Or  if,  on  the  other 
hand,  we  translated  where  we  retain  it,  and  always  spoke  of 
"the  Holy  Book"  instead  of  "Holy  Bible,"  it  might  come  into 
more  heads  than  it  does  at  present,  that  the  Word  of  God,  by 
which  the  heavens  were  of  old,  and  by  which  they  are  now 
kept  in  store,  cannot  be  made  a  present  of  to  anybody  in 
morocco  binding. 

RusKl.v,  Sesame  and  Lilies. 

(4) 
Then  the  maiden  clasped  her  hands  and  prayed 

That  savfed  she  might  be; 
And  she  thought  of  Christ  who  stilled  the  waves 
On  the  lake  of  Galilee. 

Longfellow,  The  Wreck  of  the  Hesperus. 

Rewrite  the  following  acconling  to  the  preceding  rules: 

(5) 

tent  on  the  beach,  tales  of  a  traveler,  sheridan's  school 
for  scandal,  north  america,  james  ru.s.sell  lowell,  mi.ssouri  river, 
pacific  ocean,  scott  and  denney's  composition  and  rhetoric, 
cape  cod  bay,  mount  holyoke,  rocky  mountains,  university  of 
cahfornia,  oUver  twist,  motley's  rise  of  the  dutch  republic,  para- 
dise lost,  Oliver  wendell  holmes,  arctic  ocean,  city  of  san  fran- 
cisco,  the  great  jehovah,  king  of  england,  king  edward  vii,  astor 
house,  lake  erie,  mediterranean  sea,  city  of  mexico,  cape  may, 
hudson's  bay,  Connecticut  river,  city  of  albany,  governor  big- 
gins, harvard  university,  british  Columbia,  sea  of  galilee. 

(6) 
the  man  is  an  englishman, 
george  Washington  fought  in  the  french  and  Indian  war. 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION   AND    PUNCTUATION        69 

William  penn  founded  the  city  of  Philadelphia. 

mrs  burton,  who  lives  in  Chicago,  visited  my  cousin  in  detroit 
List  week. 

the  present  german  emperor  is  called  kaiser  wilhelm. 

king  george  v  is  related  to  the  emperor  of  russia  through  his 
mother,  queen  alexandra,  who  is  aunt  to  emperor  nicholas. 

(7) 
...  to  thine  own  self  be  true ; 
and  it  must  follow,  as  the  night  the  day, 
thou  canst  not  then  be  false  to  any  man. 

SHAKESPEARE. 

with  throats  unslaked,  with  black  hps  baked, 

we  could  nor  laugh  nor  wail ; 

through  utter  drought  all  dumb  we  stood! 

i  bit  my  arm,  i  sucked  the  blood, 

and  cried,  "a  sail!  a  sail!" 

SAMUEL    TAYLOR    COLERIDGE. 

(8) 

"now,"  said  wardle,  after  a  substantial  lunch,  "what  say  you 
to  an  hour  on  the  ice?     we  shall  have  plenty  of  time." 

"capital!"  said  mr  benjamin  alien. 

"prime!"  ejaculated  mr  bob  sawyer. 

"you  skate,  of  course,  winkle?"  said  wardle. 

"ye-yes;  o  yes,"  repUed  mr  winkle,  "i-i-  am  rather  out  of 
practice." 

"o,  do  skate,  mr  winkle,"  said  arabella.  "i  Uke  to  see  it  so 
much." 

"o,  it  is  so  graceful,"  said  another  young  lady. 

CHARLES    DICKENS. 

22  Rules  for  the  period.  A  period  is  used  after 
every  statement  or  command,  i.e.  after  every  sentence 
that  is  neither  exclamatory  nor  interrogative. 

Shut  the  door.  The  members  voted  upon  the  ques- 
tion. 


To  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

A  period  is  placed  after  most  abbreviations. 

e.g.     A.B.    St.  (street) 

23  Abbreviations.  The  following  is  a  list  of  the 
abbreviations  in  common  use.  Remember  that  while 
most  abbreviations  begin  with  capitals  and  are  followed 
by  periods,  there  are  a  few  conspicuous  exceptions. 
Note  these  carefully. 

A.B.    bachelor  of  arts. 

B.C.   before  Christ. 

A.D.    anno  Dnnn'ni.  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  or  after 

Christ. 
a.m.    ante  meridiem,  before  noon. 
p.m.    post  meridiem,  after  noon. 
A.M.    master  of  arts. 
P.M.    postmaster. 
D.D.    doctor  of  divinity. 
D.D.S.   doctor  of  dental  surgery. 
LL.D.    doctor  of  laws. 
M.D.   doctor  of  medicine. 
D.V.M.   doctor  of  veterinary  medicine. 
Ph.D.    doctor  of  philosophy. 
e.g.   exempli  gratia,  for  example. 
etc.   et  cetera,  and  others,  and  so  forth. 
ibid,   the  same  (used  in  references). 
inst.  of  the  present  month. 
uU.  of  the  last  month. 
jr    junior  (no  period). 
sr  senior  (no  period). 
110.     numero,  number. 
do.  or  ditto,  the  same. 
C.  0.  7).,  collect  on  delivery. 
Anon,    anonymous,  writer  luiknown 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION  AND   PUNCTUATION        71 


i.e.   id  est,  that  is. 

N.B.   nota  bene,  note  well,  take  notice. 

p.   page. 

pp.   pages. 

pro  tern,    pro  tempore,  for  the  time  being. 

viz  videlicet,  namely  (no  period). 

vs  versus,  against  (no  period). 

MS.   manuscript. 

MSS.   manuscripts. 

Mt  mountain  (no  period). 

St  saint  (no  period). 

Co.    company. 

In  writing  the  address  or  superscription  on  letters  the 
following  are  used : 


St.   street. 

CO.   county. 

av.   avenue. 

R.F.D.   rural  free  delivery. 

N.   north. 


E.   east. 
S.   south. 
W.  west. 
Vo  in  care  of. 


The  following  are  abbreviated  whon  used  as  titles, 
before  the  name ;  otherwise  they  are  written  out  in  full : 

Pres.   president. 


Dr  doctor  (no  period). 

Mr   mister  (no  period). 

Mrs   mistress    (pronounced 
missis,  no  period). 

Mile,   mademoiselle. 

Mme.   madame. 

Messrs.   messieurs,  gentlemen. 

SupH  (apostrophe)  super- 
intendent (no  period). 

Prof,   professor. 


Sec.   secretary. 

Gen.   general. 
Capt.   captain. 
Lieut,   lieutenant. 
Col.   colonel. 

Rev.   reverend. 
Gov.   governor. 


Hon.   the  honorable. 


72  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

It  is  perhaps  more  elegant  not  to  make  use  of  such 
contractions  as  "  can't,"  "  \yon't,"  "  doesn't,"  "  hasn't," 
etc.,  except  when  quoting  directly. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Review  the  abbreviations  for  the  names  of  the  states. 

(2) 
Review    the    arithmetical    abbreviations,    for    barrel, 
quart,  pint,  etc.;  also  the  abbreviations  used  in  writing 
and  receipting  bills. 

(3) 
The  names  of  what  months  of  the  year  are  abbreviated? 

24  Rules  for  the  comma.  The  present  tendency  is 
to  omit  commas  whenever  possible;  no  more  should  be 
inserted  than  are  necessary  to  make  the  meaning  clear. 

1  Words  or  phrases  in  pairs  need  a  comma  after 
each  pair. 

Sink  or  swim,  live  or  die,  survive  or  perish,  I  give  my 
hand  and  my  heart  to  this  vote. 

2  Such  phrases  and  words  as  "  I  think,"  "  I  hear," 
"  indeed,"  "  also,"  "  however,"  introduced  between  the 
parts  of  a  sentence,  should  be  set  off  by  commas. 

This  is,  however,  not  the  question  to  be  considered. 
This  man  before  me  is,  in  my  judgment,  the  culprit. 

3  Phrases  and  clauses  which,  although  subordinate, 
are  by  inversion  placed  at  the  beginning  of  sentences. 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION    AND   PUNCTUATION        73 

are  usually  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  sentence  by  a 
comma.     This  rule,  however,  is  not  invariable. 

Having  completed  the  work,  the  man  departed. 

4  A  comma  is  used  when  a  coordinate  conjunction  is 
omitted. 

Men,  women  and  children  ran  to  the  fire. 

The  boy  studied  Latin,  algebra,  history  and  civics. 

If  the  last  conjunction  is  omitted,  a  comma  is  also 
placed  after  the  series. 

Planks,  trees,  houses,  debris  of  all  kinds,  were  being 
carried  down  the  river. 

5  Expressions  placed  between  the  parts  of  a  quota- 
tion should  be  separated  from  the  rest  of  the  sentences 
by  commas, 

"Well,"  said  he,  "I  am  sure  I  do  not  know  what  to 
do." 

6  Words  in  apposition  with  their  modifiers  are  set 
off  by  commas ;  when,  however,  the  first  term  is  a  gen- 
eral or  class  name,  the  comma  is  omitted. 

Longfellow,  the  poet,  was  a  professor  in  Harvard. 
The  poet  Longfellow  was  a  professor  in  Harvard. 

7  Nouns  or  phrases  used  in  direct  address  should  be 
set  off  by  commas. 

John,  listen  to  what  I  am  saying, 

I  am  sure,  my  dear  sir,  that  you  will  agree  with  me. 


74  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

8  Non-restrictive  relative  clauses  are  separated  from 
the  rest  of  the  sentence  by  commas. 

The  girl  who  lent  me  the  book  was  not  at  the  desk, 
[Restrictive.] 

This  girl,  who  is  my  cousin,  found  the  book  and  re- 
turned it  to  me.     [Non  restrictive.] 

9  Quotations  following  the  verb  of  saying  are  usu- 
ally separated  from  that  verb  by  a  comma.  If  the 
quotation  is  very  long,  a  colon  may  be  used. 

Quoth  he,  "The  pen  is  mightier  than  the  sword." 

EXERCISE 

Capitalize  and  punctuate  the  following,  giving  the 
reason  for  each  change  made: 

with  my  idea  of  the  rector  derived  from  a  picture  in  the 
dining-parior  stiff  and  stately  in  a  huge  full-bottomed  vng  with 
gown  cassock  and  bands  and  his  hand  upon  a  copy  of  the  only 
sermon  he  ever  published  —  it  was  strange  to  read  these  letters 

you  know  i  suppose  that  my  sister  is  coming  home  todaj^ 

silas  marner  one  of  the  best  books  i  ever  read  was  written  by 
a  woman 

irving  was  a  native  of  new  york  hawthorne  of  new  england 

indeed  i  believe  the  man  tries  to  do  right 

sitting  on  the  veranda  of  a  cottage  by  the  seashore  i  was 
interested  in  watching  the  people  as  they  went  about  their 
different  occupations 

motherwort  catnip  plantain  tansy  wild  mustard  —  what  a 
homely  human  look  they  have! 

the  stately  trees  the  moon  and  shining  stars  the  softly-stirring 
wind  the  overshadowed  lane  the  broad  bright  country  side  they 
all  kept  watch 


KEVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION    AND   PUNCTUATION        75 

the  odd  little  man  who  had  addressed  rip  led  the  way  up  the 
mountain 

a  civil  war  indeed  is  Uke  the  heat  of  a  fever 

surely  saith  he  i  had  rather  a  great  deal  men  should  say 
there  was  no  such  man  at  all  as  plutarch  than  that  they  should 
say  that  there  was  one  plutarch  that  would  eat  his  children  as 
soon  as  they  were  born  as  the  poets  speak  of  saturn 

i  must  have  books  pictures  theatres  chit-chat  scandal  jokes 
ambiguities  and  a  thousand  whim-whams  which  the  quakers 
with  their  simple  tastes  can  do  without 

if  they  can  sit  with  us  at  table  why  do  they  keck  at  our 
cookery? 

how  things  were  suffered  to  go  on  thus  i  cannot  guess 

softly  my  worthy  friend  replied  i  you  are  not  aware  how 
much  better  off  you  are  than  most  books  of  your  generation 

i  can  sew  neatly  she  said  and  i  like  nursing 

longfellow  the  poet  was  very  fond  of  children 

the  poet  holmes  was  also  a  physician 

25  Rules  for  the  semicolon.  The  semicolon  is  used 
but  seldom.  Habitual  use  of  this  mark  usually  leads  to 
weak  and  careless  sentence  structure. 

1  Between  coordinate  clauses  (a)  which  are  shghtly 
connected,  or  (6)  which  are  themselves  subdivided  by 
the  comma,  a  semicolon  is  used. 

Crafty  men  contemn  studies,  simple  men  admire  them, 
and  wise  men  use  them;  for  they  teach  not  their  own 
use,  but  that  is  a  wisdom  without  them  and  above  them, 
won  by  observation. 

2  A  semicolon  is  used  between  long  or  involved 
phrases  or  clauses  which  have  a  common  dependence 
upon  something  which  precedes  or  follows. 


76  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

If  you  would  work  any  man,  you  must  either  know 
his  nature  and  fashions,  and  so  lead  him;  or  his  ends, 
and  so  persuade  him;  or  his  weakness  and  disadvantages, 
and  so  awe  him;  or  those  that  have  interest  in  him,  and 
so  govern  him. 

3  A  semicolon  is  used  before,  and  a  comma  after,  as, 
to  wit,  namely,  and  that  is,  when  they  are  used  to  intro- 
duce examples  or  illustrations.  The  semicolon  is  also 
used  before  i.e.  and  e.g.  but  the  comma  is  omitted  after 
them. 

The  boy  has  studied  four  languages;  namely,  Greek, 
Latin,  French,  German. 

A  capital  is  used  to  begin  every  proper  name;  e.g. 
Massachusetts. 

26  Rules  for  the  colon.  The  colon  is  even  less 
frequently  used  than  the  semicolon. 

1  The  colon  is  used  after  the  salutation  in  letters. 

My  dear  sir:     Dear  madam: 

2  The  colon  is  used  before  a  long  involved  quota- 
tion or  an  enumeration  of  particulars  formally  intro- 
duced. 

The  orator  of  the  evening  spoke  as  follows:  Ladies  and 
gentlemen,  I  come  before  you,  etc. 

EXERCISE 

Punctuate  the  follpwing,  giving  the  reason  for  every 
mark  used: 

Some  books  are  to  be  tasted  others  to  be  swallowed  and  some 
few  to  be  chewed  and  digested  that  is  some  books  are  to  be  read 


REVIEW  OF   CAPITALIZATION   AND   PUNCTUATION       77 

only  in  parts  others  to  be  read  but  not  curiously  and  some  few 
to  be  read  wholly  and  with  diligence  and  attention 

He  that  considereth  the  wind  shall  not  sow  and  he  that 
looketh  to  the  clouds  shall  not  reap 

Some  when  they  take  revenge  are  desirous  the  party  should 
know  whence  it  cometh  this  is  the  more  generous 

Such  a  piece  of  news  as  Lord  Mauleverer's  visit  was  not  to  be 
lost  on  the  Cranford  letter  writers  they  made  the  most  of  it. 

I  had  often  occasion  to  notice  the  use  that  was  made  of  frag- 
ments and  small  opportunities  in  Cranford  the  rose  leaves  that 
were  gathered  5re  they  fell  to  make  into  a  pot-pourri  for  some 
one  who  had  no  garden  the  Httle  bundles  of  lavender-flowers 
sent  to  strew  the  drawers  of  some  town  dweller  or  to  burn  in 
the  chamber  of  some  invalid 

In  the  morning  of  life  the  shadows  of  Ufe  all  he  behind  us  at 
noon  we  trample  them  under  foot  and  in  the  evening  they  stretch 
long  broad  and  deepening  before  us 

Give  an  example  of  each  of  the  following  simple  sentence 
complex  sentence  compound  sentence 

Luck  relies  on  chance  labor  on  character 

Luck  is  ever  waiting  for  something  to  turn  up  labor  with 
keen  eyes  and  strong  will  will  turn  up  something 

But  above  all  that  of  the  triumph  amongst  the  Romans  was 
not  pageants  or  gaudery  but  one  of  the  wisest  and  noblest  insti- 
tutions that  ever  was  for  it  contained  three  things  honor  to  the 
general  riches  to  the  treasury  out  of  the  spoils  and  donatives 
to  the  army 

27  Rules  for  the  interrogation  point. 

1  An  interrogation  point  or  question  mark  is  placed 
after  every  direct  question, 

"Hurt?"  he  asked. 

2  An  interrogation  point  inclosed  in  parenthesis  is 
placed  after  a  statement  to  indicate  doubt  of  its  accuracy. 


78  riRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

Columbus  discovered  the  mainland  in  August  (?),  1498. 
Ichabod    disappeared    after    his    encounter    with    the 

ghost  (?). 

28  Rule  for  the  exclamation  point. 

An  exclamation  point  is  placed  after  every  exclama- 
tory expression. 

What  passion  cannot  music  raise  and  quell! 
"Alas!''  he  said,  "I  thought  I  was  right!'' 

When  the  interjection  is  repeated,  a  comma  may  be 
used  to  separate  the  words,  an  exclamation  point  being 
placed  only  after  the  last. 

"Ha,  ha,  ha!"    laughed  Polly. 
EXERCISE 

Punctuate  the  following: 

How  much  thought  I  has  each  of  these  volumes  now  thrust 
aside  with  such  indifference  cost  some  aching  head 

The  book  was  published  in  1640  was  it  not 
"Oh  that  wicked  flagon"  thought  Rip     "What  excuse  shall 
I  make  to  Dame  Van  Winkle  " 

"  Poor  Mary  "  at  length  broke  with  a  heavy  sigh  from  his  lips 

"  And  what  of  her  "  asked  I  "  has  anything  happened  to  her  " 

Where  is  Van  Bummel  the  schoolmaster 

Oh  my  dear  mother  I  do  wish  you  could  see  her 

Oh  dear  oh  dear    What  shall  I  do 

He  was  too  fond  of  mischief    Poor  Peter 

29  Rules  for  quotation  marks. 

1  Every  direct  quotation  should  be  inclosed  in 
double  quotation  marks  —  that  is,  the  exact  words  of 
the  speaker  or  writer  and  those  only  should  be  inclosed 
by  the  quotation  marks. 


REVIEW   OF    CAPITALIZATION   AND   PUNCTUATION        79 

"I  like  Ivanhoe  best  of  all/'  said  my  friend.     [Direct.] 
My  friend  said   that  she  liked   Ivanhoe  best  of  all. 
[Indirect  —  no  quotation  marks.] 

2  A  quotation  within  another  quotation  should  be 
inclosed  by  single  quotation  marks. 

"Our  motto,"  exclaimed  he,  "is  'United  we  stand, 
divided  we  fall!'" 

3  Titles  of  books,  essays,  etc.,  when  neither  preceded 
by  the  author's  name  nor  printed  in  italics,  are  usually 
inclosed  in  double  quotation  marks. 

"  The  Ancient  Mariner,"  as  well  as  "  The  Vision  of  Sir 
Launfal,"  teaches  a  moral  truth. 

Caution.  Remember  that  quotation  marks,  whether 
double  or  single,  belong  in  pairs,  one  at  the  beginning 
and  one  at  the  end  of  a  quotation.  Whenever  the 
direct  quotation  is  interrupted  by  the  introduction  of 
other  words,  such  as  "  he  said,"  etc.,  the  first  set  of 
marks  must  be  completed  and  a  new  set  begun  when 
the  quotation  is  resumed.  If,  however,  no  such  ex- 
pressions are  introduced,  the  marks  need  only  be  at  the 
beginning  and  the  end,  unless  the  selection  quoted  con- 
sists of  several  paragraphs.  In  such  case,  quotation 
marks  are  used  at  the  beginning  of  each  paragraph  but 
at  the  end  of  the  last  one  only. 

EXERCISE 

Paragraph  and  punctuate  the  following  conversation: 

Have  you  seen  any  numbers  of  The  Pickwick  Papers  said 
Captain  Brown    Capital  thing    Now  Miss  Jenkyns  was  daughter 


80  FIRST    VEAU    ENGLISH 

of  a  deceased  rector  of  Craiiford  and  on  the  strength  of  a  num- 
ber of  manuscript  sermons  and  a  pretty  good  library  of  divinity 
considered  herself  literary  and  looked  upon  any  conversation 
about  books  as  a  challenge  to  her  so  she  answered  and  said  that 
she  had  seen  them  and  indeed  might  say  she  had  read  them 
And  what  do  you  think  of  them  exclaimed  Captain  Brown 
Aren't  they  famously  good  So  urged  Miss  Jenkyns  could  not 
but  speak  I  must  say  I  don't  think  they  are  by  any  means 
equal  to  Dr  Johnson  Still  perhaps  the  author  is  young  Let 
him  persevere  and  who  knows  what  he  may  become  if  he  will 
take  the  great  doctor  for  his  model  This  was  evidently  too 
much  for  Captain  Brown  to  take  placidly  and  I  saw  the  words 
on  the  tip  of  his  tongue  before  Miss  Jenkyns  had  finished  her 
sentence  It  is  quite  a  different  sort  of  thing  my  dear  madam 
he  began  I  am  quite  aware  of  that  returned  she  and  I  make 
allowances  Captain  Brown  Just  allow  me  to  read  you  a  scene 
out  of  this  month's  number  pleaded  he  I  had  it  only  this 
morning  and  I  don't  think  the  company  can  have  read  it  yet 
As  you  please  said  she  settling  herself  with  an  air  of  resignation 
He  read  the  account  of  the  swarry  which  Sam  Weller  gave  at 
Bath  Some  of  us  laughed  heartily  I  did  not  dare  because  I 
was  staying  in  the  house  Miss  Jenkyns  sat  in  patient  gravity 
When  it  was  ended  she  turned  to  me  and  said  with  mild  dignity 
Fetch  me  Rasselas  my  dear  out  of  the  book  room  When  I 
brought  it  to  her  she  turned  to  Captain  Brown  Xow  allow  me 
to  read  you  a  scene  and  then  the  present  company  can  judge 
between  your  favorite  Mr  Boz  and  Dr  Johnson  She  read  one  of 
the  conversations  between  Rasselas  and  Imlac  in  a  high-pitched 
majestic  voice  and  when  she  had  ended  she  said  I  imagine  I  am 
now  justified  in  my  preference  of  Dr  Johnson  as  a  writer  of 
fiction 

30  Rules  for  the  dash.  The  following  are  the  most 
important  rules  for  the  use  of  the  dash : 

1  The  dash  should  be  used  where  there  is  an  omis- 
sion of  letters  or  figures. 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION    AND   PUNCTUATION        81 

Mary  saw  her  friend  Mrs.  B —  yesterday. 

The  warehouse  of  the  company  is  at  214-216  High 

street. 

2  The  dash  should  be  used  to  mark  sudden  changes 
in  thought  or  in  grammatical  construction. 

Father,  mother,  brother  —  where  are  they? 

3  The  dash  should  be  used  to  mark  pauses  or  repeti- 
tions of  w^ords  which  are  intended  for  elocutionary  effect- 

"I  c-can  nev-er  do  it,"  she  sobbed. 

31  Marks  of  parenthesis.  Parentheses  are  used  to 
inclose  closely  connected  but  unessential  matter.  These 
marks  are  at  present  seldom  used  in  carefully  written 
composition,  except  in  reports  of  speeches,  where  proper 
names  or  expressions  of  approval  and  disapproval  on 
the  part  of  the  audience  are  placed  within  parentheses. 

The  gentleman  from  the    thirty-second   (^Ir.  A ) 

has  seen  fit  to  refer  to  my  record  in  the  lower  house 
(hear!  hear!). 

32  Brackets.  These  are  used  to  inclose  comments, 
criticisms,  or  directions  which  are  entirely  independent 
of  the  rest  of  the  sentence. 

Shylock.     [Aside.]     How  like  a  fawning  publican  he  looks! 

33  Apostrophe.  The  apostrophe  is  the  sign  of  the 
possessive  case.  It  is  used  to  form  the  plurals  of  figures 
and  letters,  and  is  inserted  whenever  one  or  more  letters 
are  omitted. 

Don't  use  Mary's  racket. 
Bp  careful  to  dot  vour  i's. 


82  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

34  Hyphen.  The  hyphen  is  used  to  divide  a  word 
into  syllables.  It  is  sometimes  used  to  join  the  parts 
of  a  compound  word,  although  the  tendency  now  is  to 
omit  such  hyphens,  the  parts  being  written  together  as 
one  word,  or  being  entirely  separated  if  the  connection 
is  but  slight. 

cheer-ful-ness         se-clud-ed 

light-footed  toda}'  bookkeeping 

Cautions.  Never  put  punctuation  marks  or  capitals 
in  a  sentence  unless  there  is  a  definite  reason  for  so  doing. 
Too  many  of  these  are  worse  than  too  few. 

Avoid,  as  far  as  practicable,  doubling  punctuation 
marks;  i.e.  comma  and  dash,  period  and  comma. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Punctuate  the  following,  giving  a  reason  for  the  use 
of  each  mark: 

Well  after  all  what  is  dress  that  we  should  care  about  it 
Youll  tell  me  if  you  want  anything  wont  you  Here  is  the  bell 
I  suppose  turbans  have  not  got  down  to  Drumble  yet  have  they 

As  I  was  stepping  out  of  Gordon's  shop  today  I  chanced  to 
go  into  the  George  my  Betty  has  a  second  cousin  who  is  cham- 
bermaid there  and  I  thought  Betty  would  like  to  hear  how  she 
was  and  not  seeing  any  one  about  I  strolled  up  the  staircase  and 
found  myself  in  the  passage  leading  to  the  assembly  room 

There  are  six  syllables  in  the  word  in  com  pre  hens  i  ble 

My  friend  Mrs  J  visited  in  the  town  of  M  last  week  Didnt 
you  know  about  it 

Madame  Defarge  looked  coldly  at  her  and  said  The  wife  of 
EvT^monde  where  is  she 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION   AND   PUNCTUATION        83 

All  our  lives  we  have  seen  our  sister  women  suffer  in  them- 
selves and  in  their  children  poverty  nakedness  hunger  thirst 
sickness  misery  oppression  and  neglect  of  kinds  all  these  we 
have  seen  and  known. 

Rip  bethought  himself  a  moment  and  inquired  wheres  Nicho- 
las Vedder 

Nicholas  Vedder  Why  he  is  dead  and  gone  these  eighteen 
years  There  was  a  wooden  tombstone  in  the  churchyard  that 
used  to  tell  all  about  him  but  thats  rotten  and  gone  too 

God  knows  exclaimed  he  at  his  wits  end  Im  not  myself 
Im  somebody  else  thats  me  yonder  no  thats  somebody  else  got 
into  my  shoes  I  was  myself  last  night  but  I  fell  asleep  on  the 
mountain  and  they  ve  changed  my  gun  and  everything  s  changed 
and  Im  changed  and  I  cant  tell  whats  my  name  or  who  I  am 

(2) 
Rewrite  each  of  the  following,  using  capitals  and  in- 
serting punctuation  marks  according  to  the    preceding 
rules.    Give  a  reason  for  each  change  made. 

just  then  a  scout  came  flying 

all  wild  ^^^th' haste  and  fear 
to  arms  to  arms  sir  consul 

lars  porsena  is  here 

MACAULAY  horotius 

then  i  told  what  a  tall  upright  graceful  person  their  great 
grandmother  field  once  was  and  how  in  her  youth  she  was 
esteemed  the  best  dancer  here  aUces  little  right  foot  played  an 
involuntary  movement  till  upon  my  looking  grave  it  desisted 
the  best  dancer  i  was  saying  in  the  county  till  a  cruel  disease 
called  a  cancer  came  and  bowed  her  down  with  pain  but  it 
could  never  bend  her  good  spirits  or  make  them  stoop  but  they 
were  still  upright  because  she  was  so  good  and  reUgious 

CHARLES  LAMB  dream  children  a  reverie 


84  FIK.ST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

he  had  on  a  coat  made  of  that  cloth  they  call  thunder  and 
lightning  which  though  grown  too  short  was  much  too  good  to 
be  thrown  away  his  waistcoat  was  of  gosling  green  and  his  sisters 
had  tied  his  hair  with  a  broad  black  ribbon  we  all  followed  him 
several  paces  from  the  door  bawling  after  him  good  luck  good 
luck  until  we  could  see  him  no  longer 

i  began  to  wonder  what  could  keep  our  son  so  long  iit  the  fair 
as  it  was  now  almost  nightfall  never  mind  our  son  cried  my 
wife  depend  upon  it  he  knows  what  he  is  about  ill  warrant 
well  never  see  him  sell  his  hen  on  a  rainy  day  i  have  seen  him 
buy  such  bargains  as  would  amaze  one  ill  tell  you  a  good  story 
about  that  that  will  make  you  spUt  your  sides  with  laughing 
but  as  i  live  yonder  comes  moses  \\'ithout  the  horse  and  a  box 
at  his  back 

what  cried  my  wife  not  silver  the  rims  not  silver 
no  cried  i  no  more  silver  than  your  saucepan 

oi.ivKri  coi.DsMiTH  ricar  <»/  uakefield. 

you  will  tind  me  a  iheerful  little  body  answered  phoebe 
smiling  and  yet  with  a  kind  of  gentle  dignity  and  i  mean  to  earn 
my  bread  you  know  i  have  not  been  brought  up  a  pyncheon  a 
girl  learns  many  things  in  a  new  england  village 

hepzibah  brought  out  some  old  silver  spoons  with  the  family 
crest  upon  them  and  a  china  tea-set  painted  over  with  gro- 
tesque figures  of  man  bird  and  beast  in  as  grotesque  a  landscape 
your  great  great  great  great  grandmother  had  these  cups  when 
she  was  married  said  hepzibah  to  phoebe  she  was  a  davenport 
of  a  good  family 

HAWTHORNE  housc  of  scven  gables. 

(3) 
Give  the  reason  for  every    capital    and  punctuation 
mark  in  the  following: 


REVIEW   OF   CAPITALIZATION   AND  PUNCTUATION        86 

"Alas!  gentlemen,"  cried  Rip,  somewhat  dismayed,  "I  am  a 
poor,  quiet  man,  a  native  of  the  place,  and  a  loyal  subject  of 
the  king,  God  bless  him!" 

Here  a  general  shout  burst  from  the  bystanders:  "A  Tory! 
a  Tory!  a  spy!  a  refugee!  hustle  him!  away  with  him!" 

Irving,  Rip  Van  Winkle. 

"Never  mind  touching  your  hat,  Sam,"  said  Mr.  Winkle 
hastily.  "You  needn't  take  your  hand  away  to  do  that.  I 
meant  to  have  given  you  five  shillings  this  morning  for  a  Christ- 
mas box,  Sam.     I'll  give  it  to  you  this  afternoon,  Sam." 

"You're  very  good,  sir,"  repUed  Mr.  Weller. 

"Just  hold  me  at  first,  Sam,  will  you?"  said  Mr.  Winkle. 
"There,  that's  right.  I  shall  soon  get  in  the  way  of  it,  Sam. 
Not  too  fast,  Sam,  not  too  fast!" 

Mr.  Winkle  stooping  forward,  with  his  body  half  doubled  up, 
was  being  assisted  over  the  ice  by  Mr.  Weller  in  a  very  singular 
and  un-swanlike  manner,  when  Mr.  Pickwick  most  innocently 
shouted  from  the  opposite  bank,  "Sam!"  .  .  .  "Let  go,  sir," 
said  Sam.  "Don't  you  hear  the  governor  calling?  Let  go, 
sir." 

Charles  Dickens,  Pickvnck  Papers. 

Best,  an  Irish  clergyman,  told  Davis,  the  traveler  in  Amer- 
ica, that  the  hawthorn-bush  mentioned  in  the  poem  was  still 
remarkably  large.  "I  was  riding  once,"  said  he,  "with  Brady, 
titular  bishop  of  Ardagh,  when  he  observed  to  me,  'Ma  foy, 
Best,  this  huge  overgrown  bush  is  mightily  in  the  way.  I  will 
order  it  to  be  cut  down.'  —  '"WTiat,  sir!'  replied  I,  'cut  down  the 
bush  that  supplies  so  beautiful  an  image  in  "The  Deserted  Vil- 
lage"?'—  'Ma  foy!'  exclaimed  the  bishop,  'is  that  the  haw- 
thorn-bush? Then  let  it  be  sacred  from  the  edge  of  the  axe 
and  evil  be  to  him  that  should  cut  off  a  branch.'  "  —  The  haw- 
thorn-bush, however,  has  long  since  been  cut  up,  root  and 
branch,  in  furnishing  relics  to  literary  pilgrims. 

Irving,  Oliver  Goldsmith. 


CHAPTER  TV 

LETTER    WRITING 

And  shouldst  thou  iisk  rny  jiul^nu-nt  of  tliat  which  hath  most 

profit  in  the  world 
For  answer  take  thou  this:  the  prudt-ut  [)(Miiiin«;  of  a  letter. 

TUPPKH. 

35  Kinds  of  letters.  J.cttcrs  are  broadly  classified 
according  to  the  purpose  of  the  writer.  They  may  be 
separated  into  three  main  divisions:  friendly  letters, 
business  letters  and  social  forms.  Of  these,  the  first  is 
always  informal,  the  last  two  strictly  formal. 

36  Form.  Letters  differ  in  form  as  they  differ  in 
subject  matter,  but  in  general  they  have  five  essential 
parts. 

Place. 
Date. 


1   The  heading 


2  The  address  and  salutation. 

3  The  body  of  the  letter. 

.    rrii-  1     •         i  complhnentarv  close. 

4  i he  conclusion    <         ^    e      -.  " 

I  name  of  writer. 

5  The  superscription. 

The  Heading 

The  form  of  the  heading  is  the  same  for  both  friendly 
letters  and  business  letters.  The  place  and  date  are 
usually  wTitten  on  two  separate  lines,  in  the  upper  right- 
hand  comer  of  the  page,  about  one  and  one  half  inches 
from  the  top  of  the  page.     When  the  letter  paper  bears 

86 


LETTER   WRITING  87 

the  name  of  the  place  printed  or  engraved  at  the  top  of 
the  sheet,  the  date  alone  needs  to  be  written  beneath  this, 
at  the  right  of  the  page.  The  number  and  street  should 
be  given  if  the  writer  lives  in  a  city,  but  if  he  hves  in  a 
small  town,  the  name  of  the  village  and  that  of  the 
county  should  be  written.  In  either  case  the  state 
should  be  mentioned.  When  the  street  and  number 
are  given,  it  is  usually  best  to  break  the  heading  into 
three  lines  instead  of  two,  especially  when  note  paper  is 
used. 

Notice  the  punctuation  of  the  following  headings,  as 
well  as  the  order  in  which  the  details  are  written. 

Phoenix,  Oswego  cc,  N.  Y. 
April  4,  1905 

156  Hamilton  st. 

Boston,  Massachusetts 
Jan.  16,  1904 

Note  that  the  figures  alone  are  used  to  indicate-  the 
day  of  the  month.  Do  not,  for  instance,  write  "  April 
4th  "  or  "  Jan.  16th."  After  the  several  Unes  in  the 
heading  no  punctuation  mark  is  used  except  the  period 
is  used  to  indicate  an  abbreviation. 

The  tendency  at  present  also  seems  to  be  toward  the 
omission  of  the  comma  between  the  name  of  the  town  or 
city  and  that  of  the  state,  especially  in  printed  letter 
heads.  This  is,  however,  a  matter  of  choice  at  the 
present  time. 


88  FIKST    VKAU    ENGLISH 

The  Addresn  and  Salutation 

The  formal  address  is  used  only  in  business  letters. 
In  such  communications  the  name  and  address  of  the 
person  written  to  are  placed  at  the  left  of  the  paper, 
about  one  inch  from  the  edge,  on  the  two  separate  lines 
next  below  the  date.  The  .salutation,  Dear  sir,  My 
dear  Mr  Brown,  follows.  This  is  common  to  both  busi- 
ness and  friendly  letters,  and  in  the  latter,  forms  the 
only  introduction  to  the  body  of  the  letter. 

Rev.  C.  M.  HarrLs 

Lawrence.  Mass. 
Dear  Mr  Harris: 

Mr  J.  R.  Thorpe 

Bennington,  Vt. 
Dear  sir: 

Mrs  D.  M.  Pitman 

Lansingburg.  N.  Y. 
Dear  madam : 

A  comma  or  semicolon  may  be  used  in  place  of  the 
colon.     A  dash  following  the  salutation  is  unnecessary. 

The  Body  of  the  Letter 

The  first  word  of  the  letter  itself  should  be  T\Titten 
on  the  line  below  the  salutation,  one  and  three  fourths 
inches  from  the  left  edge,  i.e.  just  where  any  paragraph 
should  begin.     The  body  of  the  letter  should  be  para- 


LETTER    WRITING  89 

graphed  and  punctuated  in  the  same  manner  as  any 
other  composition.  The  subject  matter  depends  upon 
the  purpose  of  the  letter,  and  the  relations  existing 
between  the  writer  and  his  correspondent.  This  will 
be  considered  under  the  various  divisions,  friendly- 
letters,  business  letters,  etc. 

The  Conclusion 

This  consists  of  the  complimentary  close,  Yours  truly, 
Respectfully  yours,  Sincerely  yours,  etc.  and  the  name  of 
the  writer.  The  comphmentary  close  is  placed  just 
below  the  last  Hne  of  the  body  of  the  letter,  the  name 
following  on  the  next  line,  a  little  to  the  right  of  the  com- 
plimentary close.  Observe  that  only  the  first  letter  of 
the  complimentary  close  is  capitalized,  while  no  punc- 
tuation marks  are  used  after  the  lines  of  the  conclusion. 

Yours  truly 

William  N.  Chester 

Very  sincerely  yours 

Emma  R.  Chase 

If  the  answer  is  to  be  sent  to  a  permanent  or  a  tem- 
porary address  of  the  writer  differing  from  that  given 
in  the  heading,  the  street,  number,  and  place  should  be 
written  at  the  left  of  the  page,  on  the  Hne  below  the 
name.  If  a  married  woman  signs  her  own  name  be- 
neath the  comphmentary  close,  she  should  rewrite  her 
name,  prefixing  Mrs  and  using  her  husband's  name  or 
initials,  at  the  left  of  the  page;  usually  the  address  also 
is  repeated  in  such  a  case.     If,  however,  for  business 


90  FIRST    YKAR    ENGLISH 

reasons,  she  prefers  that  her  own  Christian  name  or  her 
initials  ho  used,  slie  sliould  prefix  to  her  signature  the 
abbreviation  Mrs  inclosed  in  parentheses. 

Yours  sincerely 

Ella  I,  Townsend 

Mrs  Henry  Townsend 
31  n:xrj)or  av. 
Rutland,  Vt. 

Yours  respectfully 

(Mrs)  Mary  WriKht 

(When  different  addrras  is  given  in  heading) 
Very  respectfully  yours 

Martha  L.  Wheeler 

155  Grand  st. 

Hudson,  X.  Y. 

The  Superscription 

This  is  written  on  the  envelope  and  consists  merely  of 
the  name  and  address  of  the  person  to  whom  the  letter 
is  to  be  sent.  In  writing  the  superscription  (1)  the 
name  should  be  written  about  midway  between  the 
upper  and  lower  edges  of  the  envelope,  but  slightly  to 
the  right;  on  separate  lines  should  follow  (2)  the  street 
and  number,  (3)  the  city  or  town,  (4)  the  county,  if 
the  place  be  small,  and  finally  (5)  the  state.  Periods 
are  used  after  abbre\'iations,  and  commas  are  placed 
between  the  items  of  a  line,  but  neither  commas  nor 
periods  are  any  longer  used  at  the  ends  of  the  lines. 


LETTER    WRITING  91 


STAMP 


1  H-2  MkxX^  ixt. 

u.  \. 


Place  the  stamp  squarely  in  the  upper  right-hand 
corner.  A  stamp  placed  upside  down  or  pasted  obliquely 
across  the  corner  indicates  haste  and  slovenly  habits  on 
the  part  of  the  writer. 

In  addressing  a  letter  to  a  person  in  New  York  city, 
it  is  not  necessary  to  write  either  the  word  city  or  the 
name  of  the  state;  New  York  alone  is  sufficient.  In 
Awiting  addresses  containing  numbered  streets  it  is  best 
to  write  out  in  full  the  ordinals  up  to  tenth.  Above 
that,  the  numbers  themselves  followed  by  st  for  first, 
d  for  second  and  third,  and  th  for  those  remaining,  may 
be  used. 

245  Fifth  av. 
163  16th  St. 
172  43d  St. 

37  Friendly  letters.  In  letters  of  friendship,  the 
tone  of  the  letter  is  determined  by  the  degree  of  famil- 
iarity between   the   writer  and  his  correspondent.     If 


92  FIKST    YtAi:     1  .NL.1.1.>H 

the  acquaintance  is  just  beginning,  the  tune  may  be 
quite  formal.  In  general,  the  most  interesting  letters 
of  this  class  are  those  in  wliich  the  correspondent  writes 
as  he  would  speak  to  the  person  addressed.  A  fault  to 
be  guarded  against,  however,  is  "  writing  without  think- 
ing." Many  friendships  have  been  broken  by  state- 
ments impulsively  written  and  never  re-read.  Words 
in  script  frequently  give  the  reader  an  impression  alto- 
gether different  from  that  which  they  would  leave  U|X)n 
him  if  spoken,  accompanied  by  a  laugh  or  a  gesture. 

Certain  variations  of  form  sliould  be  noticed.  In  a 
friendly  letter  the  formal  part  of  the  salutation,  that  is, 
the  name  and  address  of  the  jjerson  to  whom  it  is  writ- 
ten, is  omitted,  unless  the  letter  is  addressed  to  a  mere 
acquaintance  or  to  a  person  nmch  above  the  writer  in 
station.    Such  salutations  as  the  following  are  used: 

Dear  cousin: 
^ly  dear  mother: 
Dear  Mary: 
Dear  friend : 
Dear  Miss  Phillips: 

Only  the  first  word  should  begin  with  a  capital  ex- 
cept where  the  name  of  the  person  addressed  is  used. 

The  body  of  the  most  friendly  letters  is,  of  course, 
made  up  of  that  which  the  writer  thinks  will  be  interesting 
to  the  person  addressed.  Never  be  afraid  to  begin  the 
body  of  the  letter  with  the  pronoun  "  I."  A  stilted  and 
forced  tone  is  given  to  many  letters  by  an  effort  on  the 
part  of  the  writer  to  keep  himself  in  the  background. 
Do  not,  however,  begin  with  any  such  expressions  as 


LETTER   WRITING  93 

"  I  now  take  my  pen  in  hand,"  or  "  I  thought  I  would 
write  you  a  few  lines,"  etc.  These  phrases  belong  to  a 
past  age  in  letter  writing. 

The  complimentary  close  of  a  friendly  letter,  as  well 
as  the  salutation,  is  usually  more  familiar  than  that  used 
in  business  communications.  An  easy  and  graceful  con- 
clusion is  given  by  such  sentences  as  the  following: 

I  hope  you  will  not  fail  to  write  me  when  you  have  the 
opportunity. 

Very  cordially  yours 

Helen  King 
Mrs  J.  W.  King 
120  Fremont  av. 
Buffalo,  N.  Y. 

Trusting  that  I  shall,  ere  long,  have  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you,  I  remain 

Your  sincere  friend 

George  Johnson 

Notice  that  the  words  "  I  am,"  "  I  remain,"  are 
placed  in  the  body  of  the  letter  and  not  on  a  separate 
line. 

Many  other  expressions  may  be  used  in  the  compli- 
mentary close  of  letters  passing  between  intimate  friends 
or  between  relatives.     Some  of  these  are  given  below: 

Yours  lovingly 
Your  loving  friend 
Very  sincerely  yours 
Your  loving  cousin 
Sincerely  yours 


94  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

Do  not,  however,  use  such  concUisions  as  Yours, 
Yours  hastilij,  and   Yours  in  haste. 

Notice  tlie  form  of  the  following  selections.  Com- 
pare the  tone  of  these  letters  with  that  of  the  business 
letters  found  on  pages  102-104. 

Written  for  the  children  in  the  schools  of  Indianapolis  ai 
the  request  of  their  teachtrs. 

New  York,  Decemlx?r  6,  1904 
My  dear  boys  and  girls: 

1  wish  I  might  talk  to  you  instead  of  writing,  for,  if  I 
could  see  you  once  before  nie,  fair  and  dark,  little  and 
big,  short  and  tall,  I  should  very  quickly  know  what 
you  would  like  to  hear.  Indianapolis,  however,  is  a 
long  distance  from  New  York,  and  we  must  do  as  well 
as  we  can,  under  the  circumstances,  with  pen  and  paper. 

You  have  found  out  long  before  this,  I  am  sure,  how 
easily  talk  trips  off  the  tongue,  and  how  it  hobbles  and 
limps  when  we  try  to  write  it  down.  Yet,  difficult  though 
it  may  be,  we  must  all  learn  how  to  do  it,  for  it  is  just 
this  "learning  how"  which  makes  possible  all  the  beau- 
tiful letters  between  friends,  all  the  stories  which  seem 
so  real,  and  all  the  poetry  that  sounds  all  music  in  our 
ears. 

Some  one  has  told  me  that  you  have  studied  two 
volumes  of  poetry  which  my  sister  and  I  have  put  to- 
gether for  young  people  —  Golden  Numbers  and  The 
Posy  Ring.  We  made  the  books  because  we  loved  the 
poems  ourselves  and  wanted  every  boy  and  girl  in  the 
land  to  know  and  love  them,  too. 

I  should  be  so  glad  to  hear  the  names  of  your  favor- 
ites, and  why  you  liked  some  poems  more  than  others. 


LETTER   WRITING  96 

It  is  easy  to  love  a  thing,  and  yet  not  be  able  to  tell 
why,  but  try  to  see  if  you  can  put  your  feelings  into 
words. 

It  would  be  delightful  for  me,  too,  supposing  you 
have  read  any  of  my  stories,  if  you  would  tell  me  the 
title  of  the  one  you  like  best.  The  Birds'  Christmas 
Carol,  Timothy's  Quest,  Polly  Oliver's  Problem,  The  Story 
of  Patsy,  Rebecca  —  all  have  more  in  them  to  interest 
girls  than  boys;  indeed,  my  book  for  boys  is  still  to  be 
written.  I  do  not  dare  ask  suggestions  for  it,  however, 
lest  Indians,  bears,  wolves,  desert  islands,  cannibals, 
shipwrecks,  buried  treasure,  and  other  subjects  about 
which  I  know  nothing  be  recommended  to  me  by  every 
post. 

Goodbye  to  you,  then,  girls,  for  whom  I  have  written, 
and  boys,  for  whom  I  am  still  to  write. 

Yours  affectionately 

Kate  Douglas  Wiggin 

William  Cowper  to  John  John,  Esquire       ^ 

Weston,  March  11,  1792 
My  dearest  Johnny: 

You  talk  of  primroses  that  you  pulled  on  Candlemas 
day;  but  what  think  you  of  me  who  heard  a  nightingale 
on  New  Year's  day?  Perhaps  I  am  the  only  man  in 
England  who  can  boast  of  such  good  fortune;  good, 
indeed;  for  if  it  was  at  all  an  omen,  it  could  not  be  an 
unfavorable  one.  The  winter,  however,  is  now  making 
himself  amends,  and  seems  the  more  peevish  for  having 
been  encroached  on  at  so  undue  a  season.  Nothing  less 
than  a  large  slice  out  of  the  spring  will  satisfy  him. 

Lady  Hesketh  left  us  yesterday.  She  intended,  in- 
deed, to  have  left  us  four  days  sooner;  but  in  the  evening 


96  FIRST    YEAH    ENULISIl 

before  the  day  fixed  for  her  departure,  snow  enough  fell 

to  occasion  just  so  much  delay  of  it. 

Forget  not  vour  promised  visit.  „.  _ 

W.  L. 

Oliver  Goldsmith  to  Sir  JoshiKi  Reynolds 

Paris,  July  29,  1770 
My  dear  Friend: 

I  began  a  long  letter  to  you  from  Lisle,  giving  a  descrip- 
tion of  all  that  we  had  done  and  seen,  but  finding  it  very 
dull,  and  knowing  that  you  would  show  it  again,  I  threw 
it  aside  and  it  was  lost.  You  see  by  the  top  of  this  letter 
that  we  are  at  Paris  and,  as  I  have  often  heard  you  say,  we 
have  brought  our  own  amusement  with  us,  for  the  ladies 
do  not  seem  to  be  fond  of  what  we  have  yet  seen. 

With  regard  to  myself  I  find  that  traveling  at  twenty 
and  forty  are  very  different  things.  I  set  out  with  all 
my  confirmed  habits  about  me,  and  can  find  nothing 
on  the  continent  so  good  as  when  I  formerly  left  it.  One 
of  our  chief  amusements  here  is  scolding  at  everything 
we  meet  with,  and  praising  everything  and  every  person 
we  left  at  home.  You  may  judge,  therefore,  whether 
your  name  is  not  frequently  bandied  at  table  among  us. 
To  tell  you  the  truth  I  never  thought  T  could  regret  your 
absence  so  much  as  our  various  mortifications  on  the 
road  have  often  taught  me  to  do.  I  could  tell  you  of  dis- 
asters and  adventures  without  number;  of  our  lying  in 
barns,  and  of  my  being  half  poisoned  with  a  dish  of  green 
peas;  of  our  quarreling  with  postillions,  and  being  cheated 
by  our  landladies;  but  I  reserve  all  this  for  a  happy 
hour  which  I  expect  to  share  with  you  upon  my 
return. 

I  have  one  thing  only  more  to  say,  and  of  that  I  think 


LETTER    WRITING  97 

every  hour  in  the  day,  namely,  that  I  am  your  most 
sincere  and  most  affectionate  friend, 

Oliver  Goldsmith 

Brief,  informal  notes  should  in  general  have  the  same 
form  and  be  governed  by  the  same  rules  as  longer  letters. 
There  is,  however,  one  exception  to  this;  the  place  and 
date  are  sometimes  written  out  in  full  at  the  end  of  the 
note,  instead  of  being  written  in  abbreviated  form  at 
the  top  of  the  page. 

My  dear  Margaret: 

I  should  like  you  to  meet  my  cousin,  Edith  Thornton, 
who  is  visiting  me  this  week.  Can  you  come  to  tea  at 
five  o'clock  to-morrow? 

Yours  sincerely 

Jennie  Bigelow 
Kenwood,  New  York 
August  fourteenth,  nineteen  hundred 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Write  to  a  friend  who  has  recently  moved  away  from 
3'cur  town,  telling  him  what  has  happened  at  school  since 

h€4€ft. 

(2) 

A  cousin  from  Chicago  visited  you  during  your  vacation. 
Write  a  letter  to  a  friend,  telling  what  you  did  to  entertain 
your  cousin. 

(3) 

Suppose  you  are  visiting  in  Boston.  Write  a  letter  to 
your  mother,  mentioning  some  of  the  interesting  places 
you  have  visited,  and  telling  her  when  you  will  return. 


yS  FlUST    YEAK    ENULISII 

(4) 
Write  a  letter  to  your  brother  wlio  is  in  college,  giving 
an  iiccount  of  somo  purty  you  luivc  just  attended. 

Write  »  letter  in  w  liicli  you  uive  tin  account  of  a  picnic. 

Iti) 
Write  to  your  cousin  an  account  of  an  exciting  football 
game,  that  you  witnessed  or  took  part  in. 

(7) 
You  have  a  friend   in   Montreal.      Write    her   a  letter 
telling  her  how  you  like  your  .school  work. 

(S) 
Write  a  note  to  your  aunt,  thanking  her  for  the  book 
she  sent  you  on  your  birthday. 

(9) 
Write  a  letter  to  your  friend  who  live.s  in  Lawrence, 
jMassachusett.s.  asking  him   or  her  to  camp  for  a  week 
with  you  in  the  Adirondacks. 

(10) 

Write  a  note  inviting  one  of  your  teachers  to  take 
tea  with  you  Saturday. 

(11) 
Your  mother  is  away  from  home.    W' rite  her  an  account 
of  the  family  happenings  since  she  went  away. 

(12) 
Imagine  you  are  spending  a  winter  in  Florida.     Write 
a  letter  describing,  as  well  as  you  can.  the  people,  the 
climate,  the  products,  etc.,  of  this  state. 


LETTER    WRITING  99 

(13) 

Suppose  a  friend  of  yours  has  just  won  a  valuable 
medal  for  debating.     Write  a  note  of  congratulation. 

(14) 
Write  an  answer  to  the  letter  on  page  94. 

(15) 
Write  a  letter  to  a  cousin  in  the  far  south,  telling  him 
of  the  winter  sports  that  you  enjoy  here. 

(16) 
Write  a  letter  to  Marcia  V.  Sweet,  Rutland,  Vermont, 
asking  her  to  spend  the  Christmas  holidays  with  you. 
Give  details  concerning  trains,  transfers,  etc. 

(17) 
Write  a  letter  in  which  you  tell  what  plans  you  have 
made  for  the  next  vacation. 

(18) 
Assume  that  you  have  just   returned  from  a  visit  to 
a  friend.     Write   to   this  friend   a  note   or  brief    letter 
expressing  your  appreciation  of  the  kindness  shown  you. 

38  Business  letters.  In  business  letters  every  one 
of  the  five  parts  of  a  letter  is  represented.  There  is, 
moreover,  but  one  acceptable  form  in  good  usage. 
Hardest  to  acquire  in  a  business  letter  is  the  business- 
like tone  that  a  really  good  communication  of  this  type 
should  have.  The  following  suggestions  should  be  care- 
fully observed : 

1  Notice  that  a  formal  salutation  is  always  used  in 
a  business  letter,  except  in  a  letter  of  general  recom- 
mendation or  certification. 


100  FIRST    YKAH    KN(:rLlsH 

2  Never  use  Yours  sincerely,  Your  sincere  friend,  or 
other  expressions  of  regard  in  business  letters.  No  mat- 
ter how  intimate  the  writer's  personal  relations  with  his 
correspondent  the  business  letter  should  be  formal  in 
tone  and  exact  in  form.  Do  not  use  Yours  respectfully 
unless  there  is  some  particular  reason  why  the  person 
addressed  should  be  entitled  to  such  distinction.  For 
instance,  in  an  order  for  goods,  the  transaction  is  purely 
a  business  matter,  and  no  particular  expression  of  rever- 
ence or  veneration  is  admissible. 

3  In  applications,  such  expressions  as  "  I  take  the 
liberty  of  applying,"  "  I  beg  to  offer  myself  as  a  candi- 
date," etc.  aid  in  producing  a  good  tone. 

4  A  formal  letter  of  introduction  may  be  opened  by 
such  expressions  as  "  I  take  pleasure  in  introducing 
to  you  the  bearer,  Mr  William  Harding";  "  It  affords  me 
great  pleasure  to  be  able  to  introduce  to  you  Mr  William 
Harding." 

5  In  a  general  letter  of  recommendation  or  certifica- 
tion the  personal  address  and  salutation  are  omitted 
and  the  phrase,  "  To  whom  it  may  concern,"  is  substi- 
tuted, followed  by  such  an  expression  as: 

I  take  pleasure  in  recommending  Mr  Warren  Crosby, 
who,  etc. 

I  am  glad  to  recommend  Mr  Warren  Crosby,  etc. 

It  gives  me  much  pleasure  to  recommend,  etc. 

This  is  to  certify  that  Mr  Warren  Crosby  has  been  in 
my  employ  for  the  past  four  years,  etc. 

In  a  general  letter  of  this  kind  no  closing  phrase  is 
used,  the  name  only  being  signed  at  the  end.     Follow- 


LETTER   WRITING  101 

ing  the  name,  however,  the  official  title,  if  any,  should 
be  given. 

F.  G.  Wickes 
Principal  of  Genesee  High  School 

M.  B.  Munson 
President  of  Hecla  Iron  Works 

6  Do  not  use  such  expressions  as  "  Answer  by  return 
mail,"  "  Answer  soon,"  "  Answer  immediately."  A 
business  letter  is  usually  answered  as  soon  as  possible. 
In  case  the  writer  particularly  desires  an  immediate 
reply,  he  should  close  with  one  of  the  following  expres- 
sions : 

An  early  reply  will  be  appreciated. 
Kindly  reply  at  your  earliest  convenience. 
Hoping  for  an  immediate  reply,  I  am 

Yours  truly 

Arthur  B.  Jackson 

Hoping   you   will   give   this   matter   your   immediate 

attention,  I  am 

Very  truly  yours 

B.  D.  Treadwell 

7  Avoid  using  the  word  ''  please "  in  a  business 
letter.  ''  Kindly  "  is  a  better  word  to  use.  If  favors 
are  desired,  ask  for  them  in  a  straightforward,  business- 
like way. 

8  Let  your  letter  be  clear  and  as  brief  as  possible. 
A  business  man  has  no  time  to  waste  in  deciphering  the 
real  meaning  or  object  of  a  business  letter. 


10*2  KIHST    YKAH    KNfJMSH 

9  Never  add  u  |)()sts('ri|)t  to  u  Imsiiiess  letter.  If 
something  esseiitijd  has  l^een  omitted,  rewrite  tlie  letter. 
Study  the  following  forms,  paying  particular  atten- 
tion to  the  punctuation  and  the  position  of  the  heading, 
address,  salutation,  and  complimentary  close,  to  the 
language  used  in  the  body  of  tlie  letter,  and  to  the 
general  tone. 

1226  James  st. 
Syracuse.  N.  Y. 

May  27,  1905 
Mr  B.  M.  Kicimrds 

linldwiti3ville.  N.  Y. 
Dear  sir: 

Having  seen  your  :idvertisenient  in  this  morning's 
"  Standard."  I  hereby  apply  for  a  position  in  your  office. 
I  am  eighteen  years  old  and  a  gradtiate  <^f  the  Tuxedo 
Business  College  of  this  city. 

I  can  refer  you,  by  permission,  to  the  principal  of  this 
school,  and  to  Mr  F.  L.  Rogers,  of  438  Franklin  st..  in 
whose  office  I  was  employed  for  one  year. 
Hoping  to  receive  a  favorable  reply.  I  am 
Very  respectfully  yours 

James  L.  Townsend 

126  State  st. 
Albany,  N.  Y. 

Sept.  17.  1904 
Crawford  &  Crawford 
Buffalo,  N.  Y. 
Gentlemen: 

Your  favor  of  the  14th  ult.  inclosing  a  check  for 
twenty-five  dollars  ($25)  in  payment  of  your  account 
came  duly  to  hand. 


LETTER   WRITING  103 

We  thank  you  for  your  promptness  in  remitting  and 
hope  to  receive  further  orders  from  you. 

Very  truly  yours 

Wood  &  Co. 

134  Water  st. 
Schenectady,  N.  Y. 
October  19,  1904 
Howe  &  Barker 

Poughkeepsie,  N.  Y. 
Gentlemen : 

Kindly  send  us  by  N.  Y.  C,  freight  prepaid,  the 
following: 

25  Remington  typewriters 
6  dozen  Paragon  purple  ribbons 
3  dozen  Paragon  black  ribbons 
2  sheets  carbon  paper 
2  sheets  stencil  paper 

We  trust  that  these  goods  will  be  sent  promptly,  as  we 
are  in  immediate  need  of  them.  We  will  send  check  on 
receipt  of  the  shipment. 

Yours  truly 

King  Bros.  &  Co. 

67  Chnton  av. 
Troy,  N.  Y. 

January  3,  1906 
Mr  John  M.  Crouse 
Elmira,  N.Y. 
Dear  Mr  Crouse: 

This  will  introduce  to  you  our  friend  and  former  book- 
keeper, Mr  Henry  R,  Bolton,  who  visits  your  city  to 
engage  in  the  stationery  business.     He  is  a  capable,  ener- 


104  Fiu.sr  yi:ak   KNiii.isH 

getic,  honorable  gentleman,  and   will,   we  feel  sure,  bo. 
very  successful  in  his  new  undertaking. 

Any  courtesies  you  may  show  him  will  be  greatly 
appreciated  by  us. 

Very  truly  yours 

Sheffield  &  Brown. 

1911  Third  hv. 

Rochester,  N.  Y. 
March  12,  1906 

To  whom  it  may  concern: 

This  is  to  certify  that  Miss  Charlotte  A.  Knowles  has 
been  in  my  employ  during  the  past  two  years.  She  is 
faithful,  reliable  and  industrious,  and  I  take  pleasure  in 
recommending  her  to  any  one  desiring  the  services  of  a 
competent  stenographer. 

George  M.  Shattuck. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Write  to  Harper  &  Brothers,  New  York,  subscribing 
for   "Harper's    Magazine."    "Harper's     Weekly,"    and 
"  Harper's  Bazar,"  each  to  be  sent  to  a  different  address. 
Inclose  a  money  order  for  $9.00. 

(2) 
Write    to   the   assemblyman   of   your  district   asking 
him  to  procure   for   you    a   copy    of    the    "  Legislative 
Manual,  1906." 

(3) 
Write  to  David  F.  Hoy,  Registrar  of  Cornell  University, 
Ithaca,  N.  Y.,  asking  him  to  inform  you  concerning  the 
requirements  for  admission  to  that  university. 


LETTER    WRITING  105 

(4) 
Write  to  Silver,  Burdett  &  Company,  231  West  39th  st.. 
New  York,  for  a  complete  catalogue  of  their  publications. 

(5) 

You  find  the  following  advertisement  in  the  morning 
paper;  apply  for  the  position. 

Wanted  —  Boy  to  work  in  drug  store.  W.  H.,  326 
Central  av. 

(6) 
Mr  L.  C.  Barton  sends  your  father  a  draft  for  $22.75  in 
payment  for  goods  or  for  services.     Write  your  father's 
reply,  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  the  draft. 

(7) 
Write  to  M.  L.  Field,  126  Elm  st.,  Albany,  New  York, 
asking  for  particulars  concerning  his  annual  vacation  tour 
to  Europe. 

(8) 
Write  Mr  Field's  reply,  stating  that  the  date  for  sail- 
ing is  June  30,  on  S.  S.  Caledonia.     He  incloses  illus- 
trated pamphlet. 

(9) 

You  desire  to  enter  the  Henley  Business  College,  Syra- 
cuse, N.  Y.  Write  for  information  concerning  courses, 
terms,  etc. 

(10) 
Write  to  your  grocer,  ordering  the  following:   1  sack 
flour,  2  boxes  force,  10  lbs.  granulated  sugar,  1  lb.  soda, 
2  doz.  eggs,  1  bu.  potatoes. 


lOt)  FIUKT    VEAK    ENGLISH 

(11) 

A  friend  is  moving  to  a  distant  city.  Write  a  letter 
introducing  this  friend  to  your  cousin  who  lives  in  that 
city. 

(12) 

Apply  for  a  position  as  bookkeeper  in  the  hardware 
store  of  W.  R.  Patterson  &  Co.,  Geneva,  N.  Y. 

(13) 
Write  a  general  letter  of  recommendation  for  John 
B.  Gardiner  from  his  former  employers,  Wilson  &  Grand. 

(H) 
A  teacher  having  taught  three  years  in  a  grade  school 
of  your  town  applies  to  your  father,  who  is  president  of 
the  board  of  education,  for  a  letter  of  recommendation. 
Write  this  letter. 

(15) 
Write  a  letter  to  a  publishing  house,  ordering  three 
books  that  you  need.     Give  the  necessary  details. 

(16) 
Write  an  answer  to  an  advertisement  for  a  clerk  who 
can  do  typewriting.     State  your  age,  your  qualifications 
and  experience,  and  give  references. 

(17) 

Suppose  that  in  the  letter  just  written  you  have  referred 

to  your  high  school  principal.      The  firm  to  whom  you 

have  applied  writes  to  him  for  information   concerning 

your  ability.     Write  this  letter  and  the  principal's  reply. 

39  Postal  cards  and  telegrams.  These  are  abbrevi- 
ated business  letters.  Postal  cards  are  used  in  business 
whenever  a  short  message,  usually  a  notice  or  quotation 


LETTER   WRITING  107 

of  prices,  is  to  be  sent  by  mail.  The  superscription  on 
the  ''  address  "  side  of  the  postal  is  identical  with  that 
written  on  an  envelope.  On  the  reverse  side  of  the  card, 
the  heading,  salutation,  and  conclusion  should  be  written 
just  as  they  are  in  a  letter.  The  formal  salutation,  and 
frequently  the  whole  salutation,  is  omitted.  The  mes- 
sage itself  should  be  brief  and  of  such  a  nature  that  pri- 
vacy is  of  no  importance;  if  it  is  so  long  that  it  is  with 
difficulty  crowded  on  the  space  allotted,  or  if  it  is  of 
a  personal  nature,  a  letter  should  be  written  instead  of  a 
postal  card.  Friends,  however,  sometimes  use  souvenir 
cards  as  a  reminder  of  a  particular  day  or  occasion.  In 
such  a  case  no  set  form  is  followed,  the  name  or  the 
mere  initials  being  usually  signed  to  a  few  words  written 
wherever  there  is  space.  In  the  use  of  postal  cards  the 
chief  rule  to  be  observed  is  never  to  employ  them  for 
\\Titing  private  affairs  of  any  kind.  The  contents  of  the 
message  should  consist  of  facts  —  and  only  such  facts 
as  might  properly  be  made  public. 

Telegrams  are  the  briefest  of  all  communications. 
As  ten  words  only  may  be  sent  for  a  given  fixed  sum, 
and  as  all  words  over  ten  add  so  much  per  word  to  the 
cost  of  the  message,  it  is  necessary  to  be  as  brief  as 
possible.  Hence  all  except  the  most  important  words 
should  be  omitted.  The  name  and  address  of  the  per- 
son to  whom  it  is  to  be  forwarded,  and  the  name  of  the 
sender  are  not  counted  in  the  telegram  itself;  they  are, 
however,  essential  parts  of  the  telegram  and  must  never  be 
omitted.  Capitals  and  punctuation  marks  are  of  minor 
importance,  for  they  are  usually  altered  or  destroyed  in 
the    course    of    transmission.     Telegrams    are    usually 


108  FIRST    YEAH    ENCJLISH 

written  upon  a  blank  form  especially  provided  by  the 
telegraph  company.  The  name  of  the  place  is  supplied 
by  the  telegraph  operator.  A  telegram  should  be  clear 
as  well  as  concise;  therefore  be  sure  that  a  telegram  is 
so  worded  that  it  conveys  the  meaning  intended. 

Postal  Card 

Troy,  N.  Y. 
Feb.  2G.  1903 
Mr  Junies  R.  Russell 

West  Troy,  N.  Y.    • 

Dear  sir: 

A  meeting  of  the  class  of  1907,  Troy  High  School,  will 
be  held  in  classroom  B,  Saturday  afternoon  at  3  p.m. 

Yours  truly 

Jane  C.   Belden.  Sec. 

Telegram 

Mrs  C.  W.  Bradt 
109  Willett  St. 

Binghamton,  N.  Y. 
Delayed.     Will  reach  Union  Depot  3  a.m.     Send  car- 
riage. 

Julia 

40  Advertisements.  These,  like  telegrams,  should  be 
clear  and  concise.  Although  more  or  less  abbreviated, 
they  are  not,  however,  reduced  to  the  terseness  and 
abruptness  of  telegrams,  for  it  is  often  necessary  to 
give  many  details  in  a  communication  of  this  kind. 
Capitals  and  punctuation  marks  play  quite  as  important 
a  part  as  they  do  in  letters,  for  the  advertisement  is 
printed  exactly  as  it  is  written. 


LETTER    WRITING  109 

Study  the  following  illustrations,  noticing  the  general 
form  and  the  distinctive  expressions  belonging  to  the 
advertisement. 

Lost  — February  4,  between  Jay  and  Cherry  streets,  a 
silver  watch,  open  face.  Finder  kindly  return  to  71 
Cherry  and  receive  reward. 

To  Let  —  Two  large  furnished  rooms,  hot  and  cold 
water,  gas,  steam  heat,  rent  reasonable.     128  Lancaster. 

Wanted  —  Girl,  for  general  housework.  No  washing 
or  ironing.     Inquire  63  Grand. 

Wanted  —  By  steady  young  man,  aged  21  years, 
work  of  any  kind;  experience  in  upholstering.  Address 
J.  Boynton,  156  North  River. 


EXERCISE 

(1) 
Write  a  postal  card  to  Perry  Mason  Company,  Boston, 
Massachusetts,  and  ask  them  to  stop  sending  you  "  The 
Youth's  Companion." 

(2) 
Write  a  postal  card  to  an  express  agent  in  your  town, 
asking  him  to  call  at  your  house  for  a  heavy  package  to 
be  sent  by  express. 

(3) 
Write  a  postal  card  to  the  business  manager  of  some 
daily  paper,  and  ask  him  to  change  your  address  on  his 
delivery  list.     The  old  address  should  also  be  mentioned. 


110  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

(4) 
Suppose  you  have  gone  to  visit  a  friend  in  Chicago. 
Write  a  postal  card  to  your  mother,  telling  her  you  have 
just  arrived  at  your  destination, 

(5) 
Write  a  postal  card  asking  for  a  sample  copy  of  some 
paper  that  you  have  seen  advertised. 

(6) 
Suppose  you  are  in  Buffalo  and  have  lost  your  pocket- 
book.     Telegraph  your  father  asking  him  to  send  you 
some  money. 

(7) 
Telegraph  the  People's  Line,  Albany,  N.  Y.,  ordering  a 
stateroom  on  the  New  York  boat  leaving  Albany  tomor- 
row evening. 

(8) 
You  are  on  your  way  from  Chicago  to  Syracuse.     A 
wreck  occurs  just  east  of  Buffalo.     Telegraph  your  mother 
apprising  her  of  your  safety  and  telling  her  when  you  will 
reach  home. 

(9) 
Assume  that  you  have  planned  to  visit  a  friend.     She 
expects  you  on  the  train  arriving  at  4.45  p.m.     Telegraph 
her   that   you   cannot   come   because   your  mother  has 
suddenly  been  taken  ill. 

(10) 
After  starting  for  ■Montreal  you  find  that  you  will  be 
delayed  in  Troy  two  hours.     Telegraph  a  friend  to  meet 
you  there,  giving  details  concerning  the  time  and  place 
of  meeting. 


LETTER    WRITING  111 

(11) 
Write  an  advertisement  of  some  article  that  you  have 
found. 

(12) 
Write  an  advertisement  stating  that  you  desire  a  posi- 
tion as  bookkeeper  in  a  business  office.     Give  details. 

(13) 
Suppose  you  have  lost  a  valuable  ring.     Write  an  ad- 
vertisement asking  for  its  return  and  offering  a  reward. 

(14) 
Your  father  has  a  house  that  he  wishes  to  let.     Write 
an  advertisement  giving  details  as  to  location,  improve- 
ments, etc. 

(15) 
Mann  &  Whittle,  wholesale  grocers,  desire  a  traveling 
salesman.     Write  their  advertisement,  giving  details  con- 
cerning territory,  salary,  etc. 

41  Social  forms.  These  are  the  most  formal  kind 
of  commumcations.  They  include  formal  announce- 
ments, invitations  to  formal  social  functions,  and  ac- 
ceptances and  refusals  of  them.  The  following  points  in 
the  wording  of  social  forms  may  be  noted: 

1  They  are  always  written  in  the  third  person; 
hence  the  pronouns,  "I,"  "we,"  or  "you,"  are  never  used. 

2  No  name  is  signed  at  the  end. 

3  Abbreviations  are  seldom  used. 

4  The  place  and  date  are  always  written  at  the 
close.  They  are  placed  below  and  to  the  left  of  the 
body  of  the  note  and  are  usually  written  out  in  full. 
The  year  is  often  omitted. 


112  FIRST    VKA1{    KNGLISH 

5  They  are  always  brief. 

Remember  that  the  style  of  the  mvitation  determinea 
the  tone  of  the  answer.  The  acceptance  or  the  refusal 
of  an  invitation  written  in  the  third  person  should  also 
be  in  the  same  person.  If  an  invitation  is  tendered  in 
a  brief  informal  note  written  in  the  first  person  it  should 
be  answered  in  the  first  person. 

Study  the  following  forms: 

Mr  anrl  Mrs  Edward  D.  Wightman  request  the  pleasure 
of  Mr  Howard  Wayne's  company  at  dinner,  Tuesday 
evening,  September  ninth,  at  seven  o'clock. 

Kenwood  Place 

September  fifth,  nineteen  hundred  three 

Mr  Howard  Wayne  accepts  with  pleasure  Mr  and  Mrs 
Wightman's  invitation  to  dinner  Tuesday  evening,  Sep- 
tember ninth,  at  seven  o'clock. 

One  hundred  and  forty  Sixth  avenue 

September  sixth,  nineteen  hundred  three 

Mr  Howard  Wayne  regrets  his  inability  to  accept  Mr 
and  Mrs  Wightman's  invitation  to  dinner,  Tuesday  eve- 
ning, September  ninth,  at  seven  o'clock. 

One  hundred  and  forty  Sixth  avenue 

September  sixth 

Mr  Howard  Wayne  regrets  that  a  previous  engagement 
prevents  his  accepting  Mr  and  Mrs  Wightman's  invita- 
tion to  dinner,  Tuesday  evening,  September  9,  at  7 
o'clock. 

140  Sixth  avenue 

September  6 


LETTER    WRITING  113 

The  printed  or  engraved  form  of  announcement 
instead  of  extending  the  whole  width  of  the  page  is 
spaced  so  that  the  words  occupy  a  comparatively  small 
portion  of  the  page. 

c5K/0  j§)onioA/  CZoudA^  ot  I  C|05 

Q/:>y\y\nrvJur\.QAJYY\jUY\X  C/ocOuiaA)Aj(i> 
to  [}-o    yuJxL  t/vi/ 

z5yjL/tMAxx/iy    i/xyt/ru/Yxxju,  HAJuvUy  ^mj-^jyxXaaJjto, 
O/t  vucvnX  o'clocJt/. 

The  letters  R.  S.  V.  P.  which  represent  the  French, 
Repondez,  sHl  vous  plait  (respond,  if  you  please),  are 
sometimes  added  at  the  bottom  of  an  invitation  or 
announcement.  The  use  of  these  letters  is  in  question- 
able taste,  for  courtesy  requires  that  every  invitation  be 
answered  at  once. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Mr  and  Mrs  James  Forman  are  to  give  a  formal  dinner 
next  Thursday.      Write  their  invitation  to  Miss  Viola 
Harding. 


114  tlHST    VKAK    KNGLISU 

(2) 
Write  Mis3  Harding's  acceptance  of  this  invitation. 

C3) 
The  Iroquois  club  have  issued  invitations  to  a  reception 
and    ball    on    the    Friday    evening    after   Thanksgiving. 
Writ«  your  reply  declining  the  invitation. 

(4) 
Miss  Ella  Stedman  is  to  give  a  whist  party  Wednesday 
afternoon.     Write  her  invitation  to  Miss  Clara  Dawson. 

(5) 
Write  Miss  Dawson's  reply. 

(6) 
The  Epsilon  Debating  Society  of  your  high  school  de- 
sires to  have  a  public  debate.     Write  the  invitation  prop- 
erly spaced  for  engraving. 

(7) 
The  alumni  association  of  your  high  school  is  to  hold  a 
banquet  June  20.     How  should  the  invitations  be  worded? 

Some  mention  should  also  be  made  of  the  calling 
card  wliieh  is  gradually  taking  the  place  of  the  formal 
written  invitation.  Invitations  to  afternoon  functions 
and  to  many  evening  affairs  are  now  sent  upon  the 
engraved  visiting  card  of  the  host  or  hostess,  the  day 
and  hour  being  written  either  just  below  the  engraved 
name  or  in  the  lower  left-hand  corner. 


LETTER   WRITING  115 


Thursday 
From  four  to  six 


133  Xaftc  Hrenue 


Pliss 

Jfane  iSbelgn  Sl^ato 

To  meet  Miss  Blank 

Wednesday 

From  four  to  six 

In  acknowledging  an  invitation  of  this  kind,  the  call- 
ing card  is  again  called  into  use. 


CHAPTER  V 

SENTENCES,   CLAUSES  AND   PHRASES 

"  The  grammar  of  every  language  is  merely  a  compilation 
of  those  general  principles  or  rules,  agreeably  to  which  that 
language  is  spoken."    Cuomiuk. 

42  Definition  and  classification  according  to  form, 
A  sentence  is  a  complete  statement  of  a  single  thought. 
A  complete  thought  may  sometimes  be  expressed  by  a 
single  subject  and  predicate,  or  in  some  instances,  where 
!.he  subject  is  understood,  by  a  predicate  alone. 

Birds  sing. 
Obey! 

Oftentimes  the  subject  or  predicate  or  both  may 
consist  of  several  parts. 

Men,  women  and  children,  stare,  cry  out  and  run. 
He  helped  to  make  hay  and  mended  the  fences. 

In  most  cases  both  subject  and  predicate  have  modi- 
fiers, which  may  be  words,  phrases  or  clauses.  If  these 
modifiers  are  words  or  phrases,  they  merely  add  more 
explicit  information  to  that  expressed  by  the  subject 
and  predicate.  The  statement  is  still  a  single  one  and 
is  known  as  a  simple  sentence. 

Our  ancestors  were  nice  in  their  method  of  sacrificing 
these  tender  victims. 

116 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES   AND   PHRASES  117 

The  rays  of  a  bright  morning  sun  had  a  dazzUng  effect 
among  the  glittering  foUage. 

Every  sentence  must  have  at  least  one  principal  state- 
ment. If,  however,  in  addition  to  the  principal  state- 
ment or  member  of  a  sentence  there  is  either  another 
statement  of  equal  rank  or  a  minor  statement,  the  sen- 
tence is  no  longer  said  to  be  a  simple  sentence.  The 
main  statement  of  the  sentence  is  called  the  principal 
member  or  principal  clause,  and  if  the  sentence  contains 
statements  of  equal  rank,  these  are  called  coordinate 
members  of  the  sentence.  The  minor  statements,  which 
really  perform  the  function  of  single  parts  of  speech, 
are  called  subordinate  clauses.  Some  sentences  contain 
one  principal  member  and  one  or  more  subordinate 
clauses.  Other  sentences  contain  two  or  more  coordi- 
nate members  and  in  addition  may  have  one  or  more 
subordinate  clauses. 

I  saw  his  grief  was  eloquent  and  I  let  it  have  its  flow. 
[Two  principal  clauses,  the  first  containing  a  subordinate 
clause.] 

It  was  toward  evening  that  Ichabod  arrived  at  the 
castle  of  the  Heer  Van  Tassel,  which  he  found  thronged 
with  the  pride  and  flower  of  the  adjacent  country.  [One 
principal,  two  subordinate  clauses.] 

EXERCISE 
Pick  out  the  clauses  in  the  following  and  classify  them 
as  principal  or  subordinate : 

Riches  are  for  spending  and  spending  is  for  honor  and  good 
actions. 

Of  great  riches  there  is  no  real  use,  except  it  be  in  the  dis- 
tribution; the  rest  is  but  conceit. 


118  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

By  and  by  she  shut  the  book,  locked  her  desk,  and  came  and 
drew  a  chair  to  mine,  where  I  sat  in  moody  sorrow  over  the  fire. 

I  had  forgotten  to  tell  Miss  Matty  about  the  pudding  and  I 
was  afraid  she  might  not  do  justice  to  it,  for  she  had  evidently 
very  little  appetite  this  day. 

I  have  loved  her  ever  since,  though  perhaps  I  'd  no  right  to 
do  it;  but  if  you  can  think  of  any  way  in  which  I  might  be 
allowed  to  give  a  little  more  without  any  one  knowing  it  I 
shoukl  be  so  much  obliged  to  you. 

And,  perhaps,  it  would  not  have  done  in  Drumble,  but  in 
Cranford  it  answered  very  well;  for  not  only  did  Mr.  Johnson 
kindly  put  at  rest  all  Miss  Matty's  .scruples  and  fear  of  injuring 
his  business,  but  I  have  rea.son  to  know  he  repeatedly  sent  cus- 
tomers to  her,  saying  that  the  teas  he  kept  were  of  a  common 
kind  but  that  Miss  Jenkyns  had  all  the  choice  sorts. 

He  who  can  turn  churlishly  away  from  contemplating  the 
felicity  of  his  fellow-beings,  and  can  sit  down  darkling  and  re- 
pining in  his  loneliness  when  all  around  is  joyful,  may  have  his 
moments  of  strong  excitement  and  selfish  gratification,  but  he 
wants  the  genial  and  social  sj'mpathies  which  constitute  the 
charm  of  a  merry  Christmas. 

And  here,  perhaps,  it  may  not  be  unacceptable  to  my  un- 
traveled  readers  to  have  a  sketch  that  may  serve  as  a  general 
representation  of  this  numerous  and  important  class  of  func- 
tionaries who  have  a  dress,  a  manner,  a  language,  an  air,  pecu- 
liar to  themselves,  and  prevalent  througliout  the  fraternity; 
so  that,  wherever  an  English  stage-coachman  may  be  seen,  he 
cannot  be  mistaken  for  one  of  any  other  craft  or  mystery. 

When  a  sentence  is  composed  of  one  principal  state- 
ment and  one  or  more  subordinate  clauses,  it  is  called  a 
complex  sentence. 

It  was  a  fine  sunny  morning  when  the  thrilling  cry  of 
"Land"  was  given  from  the  masthead. 

He  even  ventured,  when  no  eye  was  fixed  upon  him, 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES   AND   PHRASES  119 

to  taste  the  beverage,  which  he  found  had   much  of   the 
flavor  of  excellent  Hollands. 

When  a  sentence  is  composed  of  two  or  more  co- 
ordinate statements,  it  is  called  a  compound  sentence. 

He  was  surprised  to  see  any  human  being  in  this  lonely 
and  unfrequented  place,  but  supposing  it  to  be  some  one 
of  the  neighborhood  in  need  of  assistance,  he  hastened 
down  to  yield  it. 

Though  he  was  rather  shy  and  distrustful  of  this  new 
acquaintance,  he  complied  with  his  usual  alacrity,  and 
mutually  relieving  each  other,  they  clambered  up  a  nar- 
row gully. 

EXERCISE 

Classify  as  simple,  complex  or  compound  each  of 
the  following  sentences;  also  select  and  classify  the 
clauses  as  dependent  or  independent: 

But  when  the  next  day  broke  from  underground, 
And  shot  red  fire  and  shadows  thro'  the  cave, 
They  rose,  heard  mass,  broke  fast,  and  rode  away. 

All  that  remained  to  be  discovered  was  the  Captain's  infinite 
kindness  of  heart  and  the  various  modes  in  which,  unconsciously 
to  himself,  he  manifested  it. 

I  have  been  trying  all  my  life  to  like  Scotchmen,  and  am 
obliged  to  desist  from  the  experiment  in  despair. 

When  the  landlady  brought  in  the  bill,  the  eldest  of  my 
companions  discovered  that  she  had  charged  for  both  meals. 

A  gi'eat  and  potent  nobility  addeth  majesty  to  a  monarch 
but  diminisheth  power;  and  putteth  life  and  spirit  into  the 
people,  but  presseth  their  fortune. 

The  last  time  I  ever  saw  Miss  Jenkyns  was  many  years  after 
this. 


120  KlUM     ^  lAH    KNGLISH 

...  To  this  the  courteous  Prince 
Accorded  with  his  wonted  courtesy, 
Courtesy  with  a  touch  of  traitor  in  it, 
And  stay'd;  and  cast  his  eyes  on  fair  Elaine. 

Various  attempts  have  been  made  by  his  biograpliers  to 
soften  and  explain  away  this  early  transgression  of  the  poet, 
but  I  look  upon  it  as  one  of  those  thoughtless  exploits  natural 
to  his  situation  and  turn  of  mind. 

Shakespere,  when  young,  had  doubtless  all  the  wildne.s.s  and 
irregularity  of  an  ardent,  undisciplined,  and  undirected  genius. 

To  him  the  poaching  in  Sir  Thomas  Lucy's  park  was  doubt- 
less like  a  foray  to  a  Scottish  knight. 

The  brook  was  searched  but  the  body  of  the  schoolmaster 
was  not  to  be  found. 

On  all  sides  he  beheld  vast  store  of  apples,  some  hanging  in 
oppressive  opulence  on  the  trees;  some  gathered  into  baskets 
and  barrels  for  the  market;  others  heaped  up  in  ricli  piles  for 
the  cider  press. 

The  animal  he  bestrode  was  a  broken-down  plow-horse 
that  had  outlived  almost  everything  but  his  viciousne-ss. 

Mrs.  .lamieson  stood  up,  giving  us  each  a  torpid  smile  of 
welcome,  and  looking  helplessly  beyond  us  at  Mr.  Mulliner,  as 
if  she  hoped  he  would  place  us  in  chairs. 

As  a  proof  of  how  thoroughly  we  had  forgotten  that  we  were 
in  the  presence  of  one  who  might  have  sat  down  to  tea  with  a 
coronet  instead  of  a  cap  on  her  head,  Mrs.  Forrester  related  a 
curious  little  fact  to  Lady  Glenmire  —  an  anecdote  known  to 
the  circle  of  her  intimate  friends,  but  of  which  even  Mrs.  Jamie- 
son  was  not  aware. 


43  Classification  according  to  use.  Sentences  are, 
according  to  use,  divided  into  four  classes,  declarative, 
interrogative,  imperative,  and  exclamatory. 

A  declarative  sentence  is  one  that  states  a  fact. 


SENTENCES,   CLAUSES   AND   PHRASES  121 

He  stepped  forward  to  hear  more  distinctly. 

The  lands  thus  lost  have  not  been  entirely  regained. 

An  interrogative  sentence  is  one  which  asks  a  question. 

What  excuse  shall  I  make? 

Where's  Van  Bummel,  the  schoolmaster? 

An  imperative  sentence  is  one  which  expresses  a  com- 
mand or  entreaty.  In  this  type  of  sentence  the  subject 
''  you  "  is  understood. 

Having  food  and  raiment,  let  us  therewithal  be  con- 
tent. 

An  exclamatory  sentence  is  one  which  expresses 
strong  feeling  or  emotion. 

What  passion  cannot  music  raise  and  quell! 

In  an  exclamatory  sentence  the  order  of  subject  and 
predicate  is  often  changed  for  the  sake  of  emphasis,  the 
predicate  then  coming  first.  Exclamatory  words,  such 
as,  how,  what,  etc.,  also  invert  the  order. 

Great  is  Diana  of  the  Ephesians! 

In  sentences  having  the  normal  order  the  exclama- 
tion point  alone  indicates  to  the  reader  the  emotional 
nature  of  the  sentence. 

Exclamatory  sentences,  being  determined  by  the  pres- 
ence of  emotion  on  the  part  of  the  writer  or  speaker, 
do  not,  strictly  speaking,  form  a  distinct  class;  that  is, 
every  exclamatory  sentence  is,  at  the  same  time,  de- 
clarative, interrogative,  or  imperative  in  use. 

What  a  beautiful  day  it  is!     [Exclamatory-declarative.] 
What  would  he  not  give  to  be  here !     [Exclamatory-in- 
terrogative.] 


12*2  FIRST    Vr.AR    ENGLISH 

Strike,  ye  cowards!     [Exclamatory-imperative.] 
The  introduction  of  no,  not,  never,  or  any  otlicr  words 
of  negation  or  denying,  makes  a  negative  sentence.     All 
statements,  questions,  demands,  or  exclamations  wliich 
are  not  negative  are  known  as  affirmative. 

EXERCISE 

Classify  the  following  (^7)  accordini;  to  form,  as  simple, 
complex  or  compound,  and  (b)  according  to  use,  as  declara- 
tive, interrogative,  imperative  or  exclamatorj-: 

How  many  things  are  thero  which  a  man  cannot,  with  nny 
face  or  comoHness,  say  or  do  himself! 

In  a  long  ramble  of  the  kind,  on  a  fine  .'iiitumnal  day.  Rip 
had  unconsciously  scrambled  to  one  of  the  highest  parts  of  the 
Kaatskill  Mountains. 

"Sure  enough!  It  is  Rip  Van  Winkle  —  it  is  himself.  Wel- 
come home  again,  old  neighbor!  Why,  where  have  yon  been 
these  twenty  long  years?  " 

From  the  moment  Ichabod  laid  his  eyes  upon  these  regions 
of  delight,  the  peace  of  his  mind  was  at  an  end,  and  his  only 
study  was  how  to  gain  the  affections  of  the  peerless  daughter  of 
Van  Tassel. 

How  trivial,  my  dear  father,  do  all  our  apprehensions  of  the 
last  evening  appear,  at  the  present  moment,  to  calm  and  in- 
quiring minds! 

.  .  .  When  the  curtain  drew  up,  what  cared  we  for  our 
place  in  the  house,  or  what  mattered  it  where  we  were  sitting, 
when  our  thoughts  were  vnih  Rosalind  in  Arden  or  with 
Viola  at  the  Court  of  lUyria? 

And  now  do  just  look  at  that  merry  little  Chinese  waiter 
holding  an  umbrella  big  enough  for  a  bed-tester  over  the  head 
of  that  pretty,  insipid,  half  Madonnaish  chit  of  a  lady  in  the 
very  blue  summer  house. 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES  AND  PHRASES  123 

44  Dependent  clauses.  Dependent  or  subordinate 
clauses  are,  according  to  their  grammatical  use,  divided 
into  three  classes:  noun,  adjective,  and  adverbial. 

A  noun  clause  is  one  that  is  equivalent  to,  or  does  the 
work  of,  a  noun.  The  following  are  the  principal  uses 
of  the  noun  or  substantive  clause*: 

1  As  subject  of  a  finite  verb. 

"What  can  you  do?"  should  be  the  first  question. 

2  As  object  of  a  verb  or  preposition. 

He  has  already  told  us  that  he  is  past  fifty.  [Object 
of  verb.] 

He  lives  on  what  he  inherited.     [Object  of  preposition.] 

3  In  apposition  with  a  noun  or  substantive. 

I  am  sure  of  the  fact  that  he  is  not  going. 

He  asked  me  the  question,  "Where  have  you  been?" 

4  As  attribute  or  predicate  nominative. 
The  fact  is  that  I  do  not  believe  him. 

5  As  objective  complement  or  factitive  predicate. 
I  shall  call  him  what  I  please. 

EXERCISE 

Classify  the  following  sentences  as  complex  or  com- 
pound, and  select  the  noun  clauses ;  giA^ng  the  syntax : 

I  know  that  you  do  not  believe  what  he  says;  nevertheless 
his  statement  is  true. 

He  relies  upon  what  he  has  accomplished  in  the  past. 

He  insisted  that  I  should  go  with  him  and  I  consented. 

The  fact  is  that  I  have  always  been  haunted  with  a  sense 
of  incapacity  for  business. 

*  An  iaterrogative  sentence  vised  as  a  noun  clause  is  called  an  indirect 
question. 


124  FIRST   YEAK   ENGLISH 

It  is  true  that  I  had  my  Sundays  to  myself,  but  Sundays  are 
not  adapted  for  days  of  unbending  and  recreation. 

Whatever  is,  is  to  me  a  matter  of  taste  or  distaste. 

In  a  certain  sense  I  Iiope  it  may  be  said  of  me  that  I  am  a 
lover  of  my  species. 

I  love  Quaker  ways  and  Quaker  worship;  it  does  me  good 
for  the  rest  of  the  day  when  I  meet  any  of  their  people  in  my 
path. 

An  opening  in  the  trees  now  cheered  him  with  the  hope  that 
the  church  bridge  was  at  hand. 

"If  I  can  but  reach  that  bridge,"  thought  Ichabod,  "I  am 
safe." 

Whether  Ichabod  left  the  country  through  mortification  at 
having  been  suddenly  dismissed  by  the  heiress,  or  whether  he 
was  carried  off  by  the  Galloping  Hessian,  no  one  ever  knew. 

An  adjective  clause  is  a  dependent  clause  that  de- 
scribes or  limits.  It  does  the  work  of  an  adjective. 
Most  adjectives  can  be  expanded  into  adjective  clauses 
and  many  adjective  clauses  can  be  contracted  into 
single  words  or  phrases. 

How  can  you  afford  to  buy  any  book  that  pleases  you? 
I  know  the  time  when  roses  bloom. 

An  adverbial  clause  is  one  having  the  same  office  as 
an  adverb.  Adverbial  clauses  express  the  following 
relations: 

1  Time. 

When  you  are  ready,  he  will  go. 

2  Place. 

Rip  followed  where  his  companions  led. 

3  Marxner. 

The  boy  walks  as  if  he  were  lazy. 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES   AND  PHRASES  126 

4  Comparison  or  degree. 

My  brother  is  taller  than  I.     [Comparison.] 
He  ran  as  fast  as  he  could.     [Degree.] 

5  Condition. 

Had  I  so  desired,  I  might  have  gone. 

If  it  had  not  rained,  we  should  have  had  a  picnic. 

6  Concession. 

I  shall  be  obliged  to  start,  although  it  is  raining. 

7  Cause. 

The  child  was  happy  because  the  sun  shone. 

8  Evidence. 

He  has  a  cold,  for  he  is  hoarse. 

9  Purpose. 

He  went  to  the  library  that  he  might  obtain  a  volume 
of  Dickens. 

10  Result. 

There  was  something  so  ludicrous  in  the  catastrophe 
that  I  burst  into  laughter. 

EXERCISE 

Classify  as  noun,  adjective  or  adverbial,  each  subordi- 
nate clause  in  the  following,  stating  the  subdivision  of  the 
classification  if  the  clause  is  adverbial ;  and  give  syntax : 

It  is  common  to  hear  a  person  say,  "You  do  not  expect  me 
to  speak  as  if  I  were  upon  my  oath." 

We  stopped  to  bait  at  Andover  where  a  meal,  partly  tea 
apparatus,  partly  supper,  was  set  before  us. 

Those  who  live  only  for  the  world,  and  in  the  world,  may  be 
cast  down  by  the  frowns  of  adversity. 
/       While  I  was  gazing  about  in  this  idle  way,  my  attention 
was  attracted  to  a  distant  door  which  was  at  the  end  of  a  suite 
of  apartments. 


126  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

The  scene  reminded  mc  of  an  old  Arabian  tale,  of  a  philostv 
phcr  who  was  shut  up  in  an  enchanted  Ubrary,  in  tht'  bosom  of 
a  mountain,  that  opened  only  once  a  year;  where  he  made  the 
spirits  of  the  place  obey  his  commands  and  bring  him  books  of 
all  kinds  of  dark  knowledge  so  that,  at  the  end  of  the  year, 
when  the  magic  portal  once  more  swung  open  on  its  hinges,  he 
issued  forth  so  versed  in  forbidden  lore,  that  he  was  able  to  soar 
above  the  heads  of  the  multitude  and  to  control  the  powers  of 
nature. 

If  it  mined  they  would  resolve  to  spend  an  evening  at  home. 

Although  the  doctor's  daughter  had  known  nothing  of  the 
country  of  her  birth,  she  appeared  to  have  innately  derived 
from  it  that  ability  to  make  much  of  little  means,  which  is  one 
of  its  most  useful  and  most  agreeable  characteristics. 

I  well  understand  that,  without  you,  I  could  have  no  hope. 

Then  Mr.  Stryvcr  turned  and  burst  out  of  the  bank,  causing 
such  a  concussion  of  air  on  his  passage  through  that  to  stand 
up  against  it  required  the  utmost  remaining  strength  of  the 
two  ancient  clerks. 

The  man  moved  a  httle  further  away  as  soon  as  he  could. 

I  am  glad  you  are  at  home,  for  these  forebodings  by  which  I 
have  been  surrounded  all  day  long  have  made  me  nervous 
without  reason. 

People  who  could  lay  hold  of  nothing  else  began  to  force 
stones  and  bricks  out  of  their  places  in  walls  in  order  that  they 
might  be  used  as  weapons. 

45  Phrases.  A  phrase  is  a  group  of  related  words 
not  contaiiiing  a  finite  verb  and  used  as  a  single  part 
of  speech.  Such  groups  add  details  to  or  complete  the 
statement  made  by  a  subject  and  predicate. 

Having  heard  this  bit  of  gossip,  he  started  for  home 
to  repeat  the  news  to  his  wife. 

Phrases  as  well  as  clauses  are  divided  into  classes, 
both  according  to  their  form  and  according   to  their 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES   AND   PHRASES  127 

use.  According  to  form,  they  are  known  as  preposi- 
tional, participial  or  infinitive;  according  to  use,  as 
noun,  adjective  or  adverbial. 

A  prepositional  phrase  is  introduced  by  a  preposition, 
which  may  have  a  noun,  pronoun,  participle,  infinitive, 
phrase  or  clause  for  its  object.  The  whole  phrase  may 
be  used  like  an  adjective  to  describe  or  limit  a  noun,  or 
it  may  be  used  like  an  adverb  to  express  time,  place, 
manner,  etc.  Prepositional  phrases  are  either  adjective 
or  adverbial. 

This  is  a  matter  of  importance.     [Adjective.] 
He  put  the  letter  into  his  pocket.     [Adverbial.] 
On   coming   nearer,    I   perceived   my   mistake.     [Ad- 
verbial.] 

Adverbial  prepositional  phrases  have  the  following 
special  uses: 

1  Time. 

He  was  here  at  noon. 

2  Manner. 

The  horse  ran  with  great  swiftness. 

3  Place  in  which. 

I  met  your  sister  in  the  depot. 

4  Place  to  which  —  end  or  hmit  of  motion. 
I  am  going  to  the  library. 

5  Place  from  which, 
Peter  ran  away  from  home. 

6  Accompaniment. 

He  strolled  down  the  street  with  his  dog  at  his  heels. 


128  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

The  horse  trotted  along  without  a  driver.  [Negative  ol 
accompaniment.] 

7  Agency  or  authorship. 

This  book  was  written  l)y  Dif^kens. 

8  Instrument  or  means. 

He  accidentally  struck  his  brother  with  a  stick. 

9  Cause. 

He  was  frightened  at  his  danger. 

10   Degree. 

He  is  taller  than  I  by  three  inches. 

The  following  special  uses  of  adjective  prepositional 
phrases  should  be  noted; 

1  Possession. 

The  owner  of  the  house  has  gone  abroad. 

2  Partitive. 

One  of  the  boys  went  home. 

3  Quality  or  description. 

I  saw  the  man  with  the  hoe. 

The  house  of  wood  burned  quickly. 

A  participial  phrase  is  introduced  by  a  participle. 
Such  a  phrase  describes  or  limits  a  noun  or  pronoun  in 
the  same  manner  as  an  adjective  or  an  adjective  clause. 

The  house,  being  in  the  path  of  the  tornado,  was  de- 
stroyed. 

Having  risen  before  the  sun  was  up,  we  started  on  our 
way. 

Participial  phrases  loosely  thrown  into  a  sentence 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES   AND    PHRASES  129 

without  a  word  to  depend  upon  are  known  as  dangling 
participles. 

Standing  upon  the  summit  of  the  mountain,  a  glorious 
view  of  the  surrounding  country  could  be  obtained. 

The  participle  "  standing,"  if  it  depends  upon  any 
word  in  the  sentence,  must  modify  the  subject  "  view." 
This  would  indicate  that  the  "  view  "  was  "  standing  on 
the  summit  of  the  mountain."  The  sentence  should 
be  reconstructed  as  follows: 

Standing  upon  the  summit  of  the  mountain,  one  could 
obtain  a  glorious  view  of  the  surrounding  country. 

An  infinitive  phrase  is  introduced  by  an  infinitive. 
It  may  be  used  as  a  noun,  an  adjective,  or  an  adverb. 

It  is  a  good  thing  to  give  thanks  unto  the  Lord.    [Noun.] 

The  boy  has  work  to  do.     [Adjective.] 

The  fruit  is  not  ripe  enough  to  eat.     [Adverb.] 

An  adverbial  infinitive  phrase  is  often  used,  instead 
of  a  clause,  to  express  purpose. 

Books  were  written  to  give  pleasure. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Select  the  phrases  in  the  following,  classifying  them 
according  to  form,  as  prepositional,  participial  or  infini- 
tive, and  according  to  use,  as  noun,  adjective  or  adver- 
bial (subdivision  if  adverbial);  give  the  syntax  of  each: 

Desired  at  a  feast  to  touch  a  lute,  Themistocles  said  he  could 
not  fiddle,  but  yet  he  could  make  a  small  town  a  great  city. 
I  was  curious  to  see  how  he  manufactured  his  wares. 


160  FIUST    YEAR    KNGMSll 

Right  to  tlie  heart  of  Lausulus 
Horatius  sent  a  blow. 

The  present  customer  stood  opposite  to  iier,  without  asking 
for  anything,  only  looking  fixedly  at  her  as  he  drummed  upon 
the  table  with  his  fingers. 

I  found  my.self  in  u  spacious  chamber,  surrounded  with 
great  cases  of  venerable  books. 

On  coming  down  stairs  I  found  Mrs.  Forrester  waiting  for 
me  at  the  entrance  to  the  dining-parlor. 

.1  found  myself  in  a  lofty  anti(|ue  hall,  the  roof  supported  by 
massive  joists  of  old  English  oak. 

The  house  is  shown  by  a  garrulous  old  lady  in  a  frosty  red 
face,  lighted  up  by  a  cold  blue,  anxious  eye,  and  garnished 
with  artificial  locks  of  flaxen  hair  curling  from  under  an  exceed- 
ingly dirty  cap. 

It  is  a  pleasure  to  read. 

The  boy  had  the  ill  luck  to  lose  his  cap. 

The  stone  struck  the  water  with  a  tremendous  splash. 

He  was  a  tall,  shambling  youth,  with  a  cast  in  his  eye,  not 
at  all  calculated  to  concihate  hostile  prejudice.". 

After  him  they  silently  slunk  in,  and  followed  by  stealth  up 
four  flights,  and  saw  him  tap  at  a  poor  wicket,  which  was 
opened  by  an  aged  woman,  meanly  clad. 

The  next  morning  the  old  horse  was  found  without  his  saddle, 
and  with  the  bridle  imder  his  feet,  soberly  cropping  the  grass 
at  his  master's  gate. 

(2) 
Write: 

1  A  complex  declarative  sentence  containing  a  sub- 
stantive clause. 

2  A  compound  imperative  sentence. 

3  A  compound  sentence  having  one  complex  member. 

4  A  complex  interrogative  sentence  containing  an 
adverbial  clause. 


SENTENCES,    CLAUSES   AND   PHRASES  181 

5  An  indirect  quotation. 

6  A  direct  question  containing  a  clause  of  purpose. 

7  A  sentence  containing  an  indirect  question. 

8  A  negative  complex  imperative  sentence. 

9  A  sentence  containing  an  indirect  command. 

10  An    indirect    statement    containing    an    adverbial 
clause  of  evidence. 

11  An  indirect  question  as  object  of  a  preposition. 

12  A    compound    sentence    containing    an     adverbial 
clause  of  manner. 

13  A    complex    declarative    sentence    containing     an 
adverbial  clause  of  condition. 

14  A  compound  interrogative  sentence, 

15  A  simple  exclamatory  sentence. 

16  An   imperative   sentence    containing   an    infinitive 
phrase. 

17  A  simple  sentence  containing  a  participial  phrase. 

18  A  sentence  containing  a  noun  phrase. 

19  A  simple  interrogative  sentence  containing  a  prep- 
ositional adverbial  phrase. 

20  A  simple  negative  sentence   containing  an  adjec- 
tive phrase. 

21  A    compound    sentence    containing    a    participial 
phrase. 

22  A  compound  sentence  containing   one  imperative 
member  and  one  declarative  member. 

23  An  interrogative  sentence  containing  an  adjective 
clause. 

24  Sentences  containing  adverbial  clauses  of  (a)  place, 
(6)  time,  (c)  degree,  (d)  evidence,  (e)  cause. 

25  A  compound   declarative  sentence   containing  an 
adverbial  clause  of  result. 

26  A  complex   negative   sentence  containing   an  ad- 
verbial clause  of  concession. 


132  FIKST    YEAR    ENCLISM 

27  A  simple  sentence  containing  a  participial  phrase 
an  infinitive  phrase,  and  a  prepositional  phrase. 

28  A  complex  sentence  containing  an  adjective  clause 
and  an  adverbial  clause. 

29  A  complex  sentence  containing  an  infinitive 
phrase  and  an  adjective  clause. 

30  A  simple  sentence  containing  two  particij^ial 
phrases. 

31  Sentences  containing  adverbial  phrases  of  (a) 
place  in  which,  (6)  manner,  (c)  means,  (d)  limit  of  mo- 
tion, (e)  time,  (/)  cause,  (g)  degree,  {h)  negative  of 
accompaniment.  * 

32  The  following  in  indirect  discourse: 

"  Why,  in  the  name  of  Davy  Jones,"  said  he,  "  is  Dr.  Livescy 
mad?" 

"Why,  no,"  says  I.  "lie's  about  tlio  la.st  of  this  cr*"  f'"- 
that,  I  take  it." 

"  Well,  shipmate,"  said  Gray,  "  mad  lie  may  not  be;  but  il  At  •> 
not,  /  am." 

"I  take  it,"  replied  I,  "the  doctor  has  his  idea;  and  if  I'm 
right,  he's  going  now  to  see  Ben  Gunn." 

(3) 

Classify  each  dependent  clause  as  noun,  adjective  or 
adverbial,  giving  its  use.  Contract  the  dependent  clauses 
to  phrases,  and  classify  each  resulting  phrase  according 
to  form  and  use. 

Toys  are  made  in  order  that  they  may  give  children  pleasure. 
When  I  heard  her  voice,  I  turned  around. 
I  select  books  that  give  instruction. 

Authorship  was  an  unprofitable  craft  which  was  pursued 
by  monks. 

The  boy  decided  that  he  would  try  again. 


SENTENCES,  CLAUSES   AND   PHRASES  138 

My  mother,  who  was  watching  at  the  window,  enjoyed  the 
game  very  much. 

After  he  had  dehvered  the  message  he  began  to  play  with 
the  other  children. 

One  day  our  schoolmaster  received  a  message  which  was 
brought  to  hijn  by  a  negro  slave. 

Ichabod  who  was  anxious  to  go  to  the  party  let  school  out 
early  in  order  that  he  might  be  ready  in  time. 

I  moved  forward  in  order  that  I  might  get  a  nearer  view. 

The  cupbearer  who  came  behind  him  whispered  in  his  ear. 

He  is  conscious  that  he  has  done  a  good  deed. 

The  boy  resolved  that  he  would  trust  to  the  sagacity  of  his 
horse. 

When  the  boat  was  completed,  he  turned  to  his  companions. 

You  cannot  fully  sympathize  with  suffering  unless  you  have 
suffered. 

He  takes  exercise  in  order  that  he  may  become  strong. 

That  he  should  take  offense  at  such  a  trifle  surprised  us. 

We  were  obliged  to  seek  shelter  for  the  storm  was  near. 

Resolve  that  you  ^dll  do  right. 

People  who  live  in  glass  houses  should  not  throw  stones. 

(4) 
Keeping  the  same  meaning,  write  the  following  sentence 
in  (a)  simple  declarative  form,  (6)  interrogative  form: 
The  boy  who  is  ambitious  is  never  idle. 

Write  the  following  sentence  in  (a)  simple  interroga- 
tive form,  (b)  simple  negative  '  form,  (c)  conditional 
affirmative  form,  (d)  conditional  negative  form : 

By  perseverance  wejpan  overcome  most  difficulties. 

Without  changing  the  meaning  rewrite  the  following  sen- 
tence in  (a)  simple  declarative  form,  (6)  conditional  form,  (c) 
negative  declarative  form,  (d)  negative  interrogative  form  •. 

A  man  who  perseveres  deserves  to  succeed. 


CHAPTER   M 

NARRATION 

Of  all  those  arts  in  which  the  wi.st>  excel, 
Nature's  chief  masterpiece  is  writing  well. 

Sheffield,  Duh-  of  Buckingham. 

46  Definition.  All  coinijositions  belong  to  one  of 
the  following  type  lornis  of  discourse  —  narration,  de- 
scription, exposition,  and  argumentation.  The  first  of 
these,  narration,  is  in  simple  language,  a  story  —  a 
recital  of  what  actually  did  happen  or  what  possibly 
Miiglit  happen.  To  this  type  belong  biography,  news, 
history,  and  many  letters.  The  composition  may  be 
short  or  long,  true  or  fictitious,  prose  or  poetry;  the 
factor  that  determines  its  classification  as  narration  is 
the  action  which  it  represents.  Any  writing  that  re- 
lates incidents,  actions,  or  events  is  classed  under  nar- 
ration. 

Ml  narratives  are  written  in  one  of  three  ways: 

1  By  one  of  the  actors. 

2  In  the  form  of  letters. 

3  By  the  method  of  omniscience,  which  assumes  that 
the  author  knows  all  that  his  characters  do,  say  and 
think. 

Sometimes  two  of  these  methods  are  combined.  If 
in  a  letter  to  a  friend  the  writer  tells  of  some  happen- 
ings in  which  he  is  an  actor,  the  result  is  a  combination 

134 


NARRATION  136 

of  the  first  two  methods.     A  long  story  is  sometimes 
told  in  parts,  sections  being  written  in  different  ways. 

The  beginner  in  composition  usually  finds  it  easiest 
to  narrate  incidents  in  which  he  himself  is  concerned, 
for  the  narrator  in  order  to  succeed  must  have  a  vital 
interest  in  his  story.  This  way  of  telling  a  story  makes 
it  seem  real.  The  realism  of  such  narratives  as  Robin- 
son Crusoe,  Siviss  Family  Robinson,  and  Pilgrim's 
Progress  is  largely  due  to  the  fact  that  they  are  written 
in  the  first  person.  Narrative  letters,  too,  embody 
happenings  that  the  writer  has  seen  or  heard,  or  acts 
which  he  has  performed.  Letters  containing  such 
"  news  "  presuppose  a  certain  degree  of  acquaintance- 
ship or  familiarity  between  reader  and  writer,  and  there- 
fore belong  to  the  class  known  as  "  friendly  letters," 
which  have  already  been  treated  in  a  former  chapter. 
Narratives  thus  written  in  the  first  person  are  called 
'personal  narratives. 

EXERCISE 

Note  to  Teacher.  —  In  the  work  on  narration  and  de- 
scription, the  teacher  should  be  careful  to  see  that  the  student 
confines  his  work  to  what  is  called  for  —  that  he  narrates  when 
narration  is  asked  for,  describes  when  description  is  wanted, 
and  characterizes  when  a  character  sketch  is  required. 

(1) 
Relate   orally  in  class  something  that  you  witnessed 
while  on  your  way  to  school. 

(2) 
Write  a  letter  to  a  friend  who  lives  in  California  giving 
an  account  of  a  Saturday  excursion  to  the  woods. 


136  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

(3) 
Write  a  personal  narrative  of  a  boat  ride. 

(4) 
Give  orally  a  narration  consisting  of  one  paragraph 
based  on  tlic  following  hints: 

I  fell  into  the  water  —  when,  where,  how  did  it  happen  — 
result. 

(5) 

Relate  in  the  first  person  some  humorous  incident,  real 
or  imaginary,  in  which  you  were  concerned. 

47  Anecdotes.  Next  to  narrative  letters  in  order  of 
study  hiliouUl  coinc  anecdotes,  or  short  stories,  which 
wc  iiuTcly  reproduce.  These  arc  of  great  u.'^c  to  the 
beginner  in  composition,  for  in  order  to  say  anything 
well  he  must  first  have  something  worth  saying.  .\n 
anecdote,  more  than  any  other  kind  of  story,  must  have 
a  well-defined  point  or  climax,  without  which  the  recital 
would  he  tame  and  meaningless.  In  a  carefully  planned 
anecdote  the  climax  is  usually  brought  in  at  or  near  the 
end.  Before  this  climax  is  reached  the  attention  of 
the  reader  or  hearer  is  sustained  in  order  that  he  may 
learn  the  outcome;  he  is  said  to  be  "  held  in  suspense." 
The  art  of  withholding  the  climax  so  as  to  produce  such 
an  effect  is  an  e\'idence  of  skill  on  the  part  of  the  writer. 
To  introduce  suspense  into  a  story  is  a  real  art  which 
ought  to  be  cultivated. 

Point  out  the  climax  and  a  moment  of  suspense  in 
each  of  the  following  selections. 

During  the  Civil  War,  several  Northern  soldiers  were 
talking  together  one  day  just  before  the  advance  upon 


NARRATION  137 

Corinth.  A  tall,  ungainly,  raw  recruit  stepped  up  to 
them  with  a  bundle  of  soiled  clothes  in  his  hand.  "Do 
you  know  where  I  can  get  this  washing  done?"  he  asked. 

Two  of  the  group  were  practical  jokers.  A  bright 
thought  flashed  into  their  heads,  and,  as  the  sequel 
shows,  unfortunately  found  expression.  "Oh,  yes,  we 
know!  Just  go  up  there  with  your  bundle,"  —  pointing 
to  the  headquarters  of  General  Grant  —  "you  will  see  a 
short,  stout  man"  —  describing  the  general  —  "who  does 
washing.     Take  your  bundle  to  him." 

The  recruit  thanked  them  and  walked  off  in  the  direc- 
tion indicated.  He  gained  entrance  to  headquarters  and 
stood  in  the  general's  presence. 

"What  can  I  do  for  you?"  said  General  Grant. 

"I  was  directed  here  by  a  couple  of  soldiers.  They 
told  me  that  you  did  washing,  and  I  have  a  bundle  here." 

General  Grant  probably  enjoyed  the  situation,  but  his 
imperturbable  face  did  not  relax.  He  simply  asked  the 
question,  "Could  you  identify  those  men  again?" 

"Yes,  sir." 

"Very  well;  you  shall  have  the  chance."  Turning  to 
an  orderly,  he  directed  him  to  call  a  guard,  go  with  the 
recruit  to  where  the  jokers  were  standing  ready  to  enjoy 
his  discomfiture,  and  let  him  identify  them.  "Take  the 
men  to  the  guard-house,  give  them  this  man's  bundle  of 
clothing,  and  make  them  wash  it  thoroughly.  See  that 
the  work  is  well  done." 

The  general  was  obeyed  to  the  letter. 

An  amusing  incident  is  related  as  occurring  in  Gold- 
smith's last  journey  homeward  from  Edgeworthstown. 
His  father's  house  was  about  twenty  miles  distant;  the 
road  lay  through  a  rough  country^  impassable  for  car- 
riages.    Goldsmith  procured  a  horse  for  the  journey,  and 


138  FIRST    YKAU    KNGLISH 

a  friend  furnished  him  with  ;i  guinea  for  traveHng  ex- 
penses. He  was  but  a  stripHng  of  sixteen,  and  being  thus 
suddenly  mounted  on  horseback,  with  money  in  his 
pocket,  it  is  no  wonder  that  his  head  was  turned.  He 
determined  to  play  the  man  and  to  spend  his  money  in 
independent  traveler's  style,  .\ccordingly.  instead  of 
pushing  directly  for  home,  he  halted  for  the  night  at  the 
little  town  of  Ardagh,  and,  accosting  the  first  person  he 
met,  inquired,  with  somewhat  of  a  consequential  air.  for 
the  best  house  in  the  place.  Unluckily,  the  person  he 
had  accosted  was  one  Kelly,  a  notorious  wag,  who  was 
quartered  in  the  family  of  one  Mr.  Featherstone.  a  gentle- 
man of  fortune,  .\mused  with  the  self-oonsequence  of 
the  stripling,  and  willing  to  play  o(T  a  practical  joke  at 
his  expense,  he  directeil  him  to  what  was  literally  "the 
best  house  in  the  place,"  namely,  the  family  man.«!ion  of 
Mr.  Featherstone.  Cloldsmith  acrordingly  rode  up  to 
what  he  supposed  to  be  an  inn,  ordered  his  horse  to  be 
taken  to  the  stable,  walked  into  the  parlor,  seated  him- 
self by  the  fire,  and  demanded  what  he  rould  have  for 
supper.  On  ordinary  occasions  he  was  diffident  and 
even  awkward  in  his  manners,  but  here  he  was  "at  ease 
in  his  inn,"  and  felt  called  upon  to  show  his  manhood 
and  enact  the  experienced  traveler.  His  person  was  by 
no  means  calculated  to  play  off  his  pretensions,  for  he 
was  short  and  thick,  with  a  pockmarked  face,  and  an  air 
and  carriage  by  no  means  of  a  distinguished  cast.  The 
owner  of  the  house,  however,  soon  discovered  his  whim- 
sical mistake,  and,  being  a  man  of  humor,  determined  to 
indulge  it,  especially  as  he  accidentally  learned  that  this 
intruding  guest  was  the  son  of  an  old  acquaintance. 

Accordingly,  Goldsmith  was  "fooled  to  the  top  of  his 
bent,"  and  permitted  to  have  full  sway  throughout  the 
evening.     Never    was    schoolboy    more    elated.     When 


NARRATION  139 

supper  was  served,  he  most  condescendingly  insisted  that 
the  landlord,  his  wife,  and  daughter  should  partake,  and 
ordered  a  bottle  of  wine  to  crown  the  repast  and  benefit 
the  house.  His  last  flourish  was  on  going  to  bed,  when 
he  gave  especial  orders  to  have  a  hot  cake  at  breakfast. 
His  confusion  and  dismay  on  discovering  the  next  morn- 
ing that  he  had  been  swaggering  in  this  free  and  easy 
way  in  the  house  of  a  private  gentleman,  may  be  readily 
conceived.  True  to  his  habit  of  turning  the  events  of 
his  life  to  literary  account,  we  find  this  chapter  of  ludi- 
crous blunders  and  cross-purposes  dramatized  many  years 
afterward  in  his  admirable  comedy  of  She  Stoops  to  Con- 
que)-;  or,  The  Mistakes  of  a  Night. 

Irving,  Life  of  Goldsmith. 


Notice  that  after  the  climax  of  a  story  is  reached  the 
interest  of  the  reader  or  hearer  decreases.  He  can  then 
usually  discern  the  final  outcome,  whereas  earlier  in  the 
story  he  cannot  determine  the  issue.  Hence  the  climax 
is  often  called  the  turning  point  of  the  story.  The 
most  important  climax  in  Ivanhoe  occurs  where  the  fire 
kindled  by  Ulrica  is  discovered  by  the  defenders  of  the 
castle  of  Torquilstone.  The  reader  surmises  that  the 
besiegers  will  win.  The  moment  of  greatest  suspense, 
or  the  moment  when  the  interest  is  keenest,  comes  im- 
mediately before  the  discovery,  while  the  reader  is 
still  uncertain  which  party  will  win.  A  long  story  like 
Ivanhoe  which  is  made  up  of  many  scenes  will  usually 
contain  minor  climaxes  and  moments  of  suspense, 
perhaps  one  in  each  scene. 


14U  FlUST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Reproduce  orally    the    anecdote    concerning   General 
Grant,  paying  particular  attention  to  suspense  and  climax. 

(2) 
Be  prepared  to  give  in  class  an  account  of  some  witty 
remark  made  by  a  ciiild,     .Model  your  anecdote  on  the 
specimens  given,  using  direct  conversation  and  withhold- 
ing the  climax. 

(3) 
Point  out  tlie  climux  and  a  moment  of  suspense  in  at 
least   two  short  stories  from  the  supplementary   reading 
that  you  have  done  since   the  beginning  of  this  school 
year. 

(4) 
Retell  orally  the  incident  upon  which  Goldsmith  foumled 
She  Stoops  to  Conquer,  divitling  your  reproduction  into  two 
oral  paragraphs  to  correspond  with  the  written  ones. 

(5) 
Using  reference  books  in  history  of  literature,  find  (a) 
what  events  or  circumstances  in  Irsing's  life  aided  him 
in  writing  the  Sketch  Book:  (b)  how  Scott's  environment 
during  his  childhood  helped  him  to  write  stories  in  later 
life;  (c)  how  the  life  of  Charles  Lamb  is  reflected  in  his 
essays.  Be  prepared  to  give  in  class  a  topical  recitation 
upon  each  of  these  subjects. 

(6) 
Write  a  short  story  into  which  you  introduce  an  inci- 
dent  from  your  own   life   or  from  the   lives   of  others 
around  vou. 


NARRATION 


141 


(7) 
Point  out  a  moment  of  suspense  and  a  climax  in  each 
of  the  following  scenes  with  which  you  are  familiar: 

Ivanhoe 

The  tournament. 

Isaac,  the  Jew,  in  the  dungeon  of  Torquilstone. 

The  trial  of  Rebecca. 
Quentin  Durward 

The  attempted  hanging  of  Quentin.     [Chapter  VI] 

The  battle  with  William  de  la  Marck.     [Chapter 
XXXVII] 
Treasure  Island 

Jim  in  the  apple  barrel.     [Chapter  XI] 

Jim's  fight  with  Israel  Hands.     [Chapter  XXVI] 

(8) 
Point  out  a  moment  of  suspense  and  a  climax  in  some 
magazine  story  that  you  have  recently  read. 

48  Thread  of  action.  Some  narratives  are  said  to 
have  but  one  thread  of  action.  That  is,  they  have  but 
one  actor  or  one  group  of  actors,  and  but  one  event  is 
told. 

John  and  James  had  a  skating  race. 
Henry  cut  his  finger  with  his  father's  knife. 

These  two  sentences  if  expanded  form  short  narratives 
of  this  kind. 

Most  narratives,  however,  are  formed  on  the  following 
plan: 

A  tries  to  do  something, 

B  opposes  or  aids  A. 

A  succeeds  or  fails. 


142  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

A  and  B  may  each  mean  oither  a  single  character 
or  a  whole  group  of  characters. 

John  and  James  had  a  skating  race.  Mr  Brown  res- 
cued the  two  boys. 

Henry  cut  his  finger  with  his  father's  knife.  His 
mother  punishes  him  for  disobedience. 

In  each  of  these  another  statement  lias  been  added 
to  the  single  statement  first  mentioned.  A  narrative 
developed  from  either  of  these  combinations  will  have 
two  threads  of  action.  The  accompanying  diagram 
illustrates  such  a  union.  The  cUmax  usually  occurs  at 
the  junction  of  the  elements. 


In  a  long  narrative  such  as  Ivanhoe  or  Qucnti/t  Dur- 
loard  several  threads  of  action  are  carried  along  simul- 
taneously through  the  entire  story.  Even  in  simple 
narratives  it  is  often  necessary  to  relate  in  succession 
two  or  more  events  which  really  happen  at  the  same 
time.  In  order  to  acquaint  the  reader  with  the  time  of, 
or  the  relation  between,  the  events,  the  student  should 
use  such  words  as  at  the  same  time,  already,  mean- 
while,  etc.  A  clause  introduced  by  while  or  a  parti- 
cipial phrase  may  also  be  used  \\'ith  good  effect  to 
secure  an  easy  transition  from  one  event  to  another. 


NARRATION  143 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Make  five  statements  each  of  which  embodies  a  single 
line  of  action. 

With  each  of  these  combine  one  or  more  other  state- 
ments to  form  a  suggestion  for  a  compound  narrative. 

Write  one  of  the  narratives  suggested  in  this  exercise. 

(2) 
What  is  the  main  thread  of   action  in  Ivanhoe  or  in 
Qaentin  Durward  ? 

(3) 
Reproduce  the  story  of   Wamba.     By  doing  this  you 
have  separated  one  thread  of  action  from  the  plot. 

Note.  —  For  students  not  familiar  with  Ivanhoe,  the  teacher 
should  suggest  some  other  character  or  group  of  characters. 

(4) 
Two  boys  were  having  a  skating  race.     Mr  Jones  was  driving 
along  the  lake  with  a  load  of  lumber. 

Combine  these  two  simultaneous  actions  into  a  short 
narrative,  using  one  of  the  methods  suggested  for  transi- 
tion from  one  thread  to  the  other.  Point  out  a  moment  of 
suspense  and  a  climax  in  the  narrative  you  have  written. 

49  Conversation  and  dialogue.  The  introduction  of 
direct  conversation  into  a  story  serves  to  enliven  the 
narrative,  to  provide  variety  in  the  form  of  the  compo- 
sition and  often  to  give  us  a  glimpse  of  the  real  char- 
acter of  the  actors.  Conversation  helps  to  make  a 
story  seem  real  and  interesting.  We  are  often  tempted 
to  skip  the  descriptive  passages  in  a  story,  but  never 
the  conversation.     We  aiso  become  acquainted  with  the 


144  FIRST    YEAK    KNGLISH 

people  in  the  story  tlirough  the  words  they  utter,  as 
well  as  through  their  deeds.  ISoiiie  stories  are  largely 
made  up  of  conversation;  every  story  may  contain 
conversation,  and  we  should  try  to  use  it  whenever 
possible.  The  direct  form  should  be  used;  it  prevents 
tiresome  repetition  of  such  expressions  as  "  they  say," 
"he  said,''  etc.,  which  are  always  necessary  in  reporting 
conversations  in  the  indirect  form. 

In  writing  conversation,  five  cautions  should  be 
observed. 

1  Try  to  make  the  characters  speak  naturally.  In 
speaking,  i)eople  often  abbreviate  statements  and  fre- 
quently use  colloquial  expressions.  Do  not  be  afraid 
to  report  conversations  in  cvery-day  language,  even 
though  the  expressions  violate  good  usage. 

2  Do  not  use  the  verb  say  too  frequently.  Consult 
the  dictionary  or  a  book  of  synonyms  for  a  list  of  words 
which  mean  nearly  the  same,  such  as  reply,  return, 
remark,  answer,  whisper,  retort,  etc.,  and  use  these 
whenever  possible. 

3  The  speech  of  each  person,  no  matter  how-  long  or 
how  short,  should  form  a  separate  paragraph. 

4  Each  paragraph  quoted  should  be  inclosed  in 
double  quotation  marks. 

5  Do  not  use  the  dramatic  form  of  reporting  con- 
versations. By  dramatic  form  is  meant  that  used  in 
actual  dramas,  where  the  name  of  the  speaker  stands 
alone,  unconnected  with  the  quotation,  the  verb  of 
saying  being  omitted. 

Notice  the  paragraphing,  the  punctuation,  the  variety 


NARRATION  145 

in  the  use  of  verbs  and  general  character  of  the  lan- 
guage used  in  the  following  selection: 

Young  Jerry,  walking  with  the  stool  under  his  arm  at 
his  father's  side  along  sunny  and  crowded  Fleet  street, 
was  a  very  different  Young  Jerry  from  him  of  the  previous 
night,  running  home  through  darkness  and  solitude  from 
his  grim  pursuer.  His  cunning  was  fresh  with  the  da}^ 
and  his  qualms  were  gone  with  the  night  —  in  which  par- 
ticulars it  is  not  improbable  that  he  had  compeers  in 
Fleet  street  and  the  city  of  London  that  fine  morning. 

"Father,"  said  Young  Jerry,  as  they  walked  along, 
taking  care  to  keep  at  arm's  length  and  to  have  the  stool 
well  between  them,  "what's  a  resurrection  man?" 

Mr  Cruncher  came  to  a  stop  on  the  pavement  before 
he  answered,  "How  should  I  know?" 

"I  thought  you  knowed  everything,  father,"  said  the 
artless  boy. 

"Hem!  Well,"  returned  Mr  Cruncher,  going  on  again, 
and  lifting  off  his  hat  to  give  his  spikes  free  play,  "he's  a 
tradesman." 

"What's  his  goods,  father?"  asked  the  brisk  Young 
Jerry. 

"His  goods,"  said  Mr  Cruncher,  after  turning  it  over 
in  his  mind,  "is  a  branch  of  scientific  goods." 

"Persons'  bodies,  ain't  it,  f-ather?"  asked  the  lively 
boy. 

"I  believe  it  is  something  of  that  sort,"  said  Mr 
Cruncher. 

"Oh,  father,  I  should  so  like  to  be  a  resurrection  man 
when  I'm  quite  growed  up!" 

Mr  Cruncher  was  soothed,  but  shook  his  head  in  a 
dubious  and  moral  way.  "It  depends  on  how  you  de- 
velop your  talents.     Be  careful  to  develop  your  talents, 


140  KlRSl"    VKAK    ENGLISH 

unci  never  to  say  no  more  timn  you  ran  help  to  nobody, 
and  there's  no  telUng  at  the  present  time  what  you  may 
not  come  to  be  fit  for."  As  Young  Jerr>',  thus  encour- 
aged, went  on  a  few  yards  in  advance,  to  plant  the  stool 
in  the  shadow  of  the  Bar,  Mr  Cruncher  added  to  himself: 
"Jerrv',  you  honest  tradesman,  there's  hopes  wot  that 
boy  will  yet  be  a  blessing  to  you,  and  a  recompense  to 
you  for  his  mother!" 

Dickens,  A  Tale  of  Two  Cities. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Write   an   imaginary  conversation  between    two  boys 
about  a  chestnutting  ex{)edition. 

(2) 
Write  a  short   story   introducing  a  conversation    be- 
tween yourself  and  a  lost  child. 

(3) 
Write  a  conversation  between  yourself  and  a  schoolmate 
concerning  your  plans  for  the  Christmas  vacation. 

(4) 
Write  the  conversation  suggested  by  the  picture  on  the 
opposite  page,  "A  Difficult  Problem."     [Material  should 
first  be  worked  out  orally.] 

(o) 
A  newsboy  sees  a  lady  drop  her  purse.  W>ite  two 
conversations,  one  between  the  boy  and  his  compan- 
ion concerning  the  advisability  of  returning  it,  and 
one  between  the  lady  and  the  boy  when  he  returns  the 
purse.  Connect  the  two  conversations  by  a  transitional 
sentence. 


NARRATION 


147 


14H  ]iK>r   vKAi:   K^(;l.l^ll 

(6) 

.Iciiliic     (•;il('S     most     ;iltiiiit     hixtks.     ricnr;;)'     .ihoul     ntil- 

(|(»(»r  spiiiis.      Write  ;i  cniivcrsMt ioii  hrtwcoii   the  twn  (ni 
the  siihjfM'l  of  n'crojit ion. 

(7) 

In  the  suggestt'il  icadiuir  tor  tills  coui'se.' or  in  some 
of  tlio  ivcent  miinlHTs  of  the  m;i<i:i/.iiies,  select  li\(' 
stories  wliicli  l)0,u:iii  with  coin'ersation. 

50  Choice  of  words.  I  lie  choice  of  Ncrlis  in  icporl- 
in<;'  con\ci>;il  ioii  has  ahc.'uly  liecn  ineiitioiied.  Xo  less 
important  is  the  choice  <  f  verbs  in  otiier  parts  of  a  nar- 
rative. \'i>rl)s  denote  action,  which  is  the  element  upon 
which  narration  depends.  The  more  exactly  the  verb 
conveys  the  nieanin.tr,  the  inoic  artistic  is  the  narrative. 
Notice  how  much  is  told  hy  the  verb  in  the  following 
expressions,  and  how  i)reci.se  is  the  information  given: 

The  top  hums. 
The  cat  pun-f^. 

Next  to  verbs  in  aiding  the  movement  of  narration 
rank  adverbs,  words  which  tell  how  the  action  is  per- 
formed. The  continued  use  of  many  adverbs,  however, 
is  apt  to  become  tiresome.  Discretion,  therefore,  should 
be  exercised  in  determining  jrhen  to  use  them  as  wcHl  as 
in  deciding  what  ones  to  u.se. 

A  thing  which  helps  to  make  a  narrative  real  is  the 
use  of  concrete  rather  than  abstract  words.  Instead  of 
WTiting  about  "a  boy,"  write  about  Harry  or  John; 
instead  of  making  your  story  take  place  in  ''  the  city," 
give  the  town  a  definite  name  even  though  it  does  not 
»  See  outline  in  the  preface. 


NARRATION  149 

need  to  be  that  of  an  actual  place.  Neither  the  leper 
in  the  first  part  of  The  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal  nor  the 
ancient  mariner  in  the  poem  of  that  title  is  given  a  con- 
crete name.  These  characters  are  used  as  types  to  aid 
in  developing  a  truth.  Compare  the  realism  of  either 
of  these  stories  with  that  of  Horatius  where  every  per- 
son and  place  is  definitely  named.  You  do  not  know 
where  Sir  Launfal's  castle  lay,  nor  where  the  harbor 
of  the  ancient  mariner  was,  but  you  do  know  exactly 
where  the  action  of  Horatius  is  placed. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Write  a  short  narrative  on  the  following,  introducing 
concrete  names: 

A  small  girl  rescues  a  dog,  which  is  being  teased  by  some 
boys. 

(2) 

The  boy  walked  hastily  down  the  street  just  as  the  six 
o'clock  whistles  shrieked  out  the  closing  hour.  The  quarter 
—  that  one  precious  coin  —  was  tightly  clasped  in  the  little 
brown  hand.  On  past  the  bright  windows,  gay  in  the  red  and 
green  of  hohday  time,  he  cheerily  sped,  oblivious  to  everything 
but  the  object  of  his  search.  At  last  the  window  with  the 
Christmas  tree  appeared.  He  was  almost  there  —  and  then ! 
He  closed  his  eyes  for  a  second  in  order  to  shut  out  all  but  that 
horse  with  its  silvery  mane  and  tail,  the  horse  that  he  would 
buy  with  Uncle  Jim's  quarter.  He  braced  his  sturdy  httle 
back  against  the  s^ang  door,  preparatory  to  entering,  when  a 
low  sob  caught  his  ear.  .  .  . 

Write  the  remainder  of  the  story,  paying  particular 
attention  to  the  choice  of  words. 


150  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

Point  o>it  a  moment  of  suspense  and  a  climax  in  the 
finished  narrative. 

51  The  elements  of  narration.  Narration  may  be 
doHnecl  ay  the  relating:;  of  successive  events  in  definite 
order,  or  as  a  series  of  word  pictures  pn\^(>nt(Ml  in  the 
order  of  their  occurrence. 

The  action  in  a  story  is  called  tlie  plot.  Inuvsniuch  a« 
action  imj^lies  actors,  it  follows  that  in  every  narration 
there  is  a  second  elenuMit.  character.  Since  there  must 
be  some  place  in  which  tiic  characters  act,  we  add  to 
these  a  third,  settini/.  The  fourth  and  last  element  is 
purpose,  which  concerns  the  motive  of  the  author. 
These  four  elements  answer  the  four  questions:  What? 
Who?    Where?    Why? 

52  Plot.  Tlie  ])lot  of  a  narrative  may  be  arranged 
in  several  ways,  such  as: 

1  By  building  up  a  climax,  as  in  most  anecdotes. 

2  By  following  the  strict  time  order,  as  in  chronicle 
histories,  most  biographies,  and  many  short  stories. 

3  By  following  cause  and  effect,  as  in  literary  or 
political  history. 

4  By  presenting,  only  such  events  as  illustrate  the 
aim  or  purpose  of  the  author.  In  this  type,  the  author 
is  especially  careful  to  say  nothing  about  events  that 
would  not  serve  to  illustrate  his  underlying  thought. 

It  is  best  for  the  beginner  in  composition  to  keep  to 
the  time  order  or  the  order  of  climax.  Complicated 
plots  require  considerable  skill  in  construction,  in  order 
that  they  may  maintain  the  interest  to  the  end. 


NARRATION  151 

In  the  following  selection  the  strict  time  crder  is  ap- 
parent. Notice  how  the  courtships  are  described  in  the 
order  of  their  occurrence. 

Will  Honeycomb,  who  looks  upon  love  as  his  particu- 
lar province,  interrupting  our  friend  with  a  jaunty  laugh, 
"I  thought,  Knight,"  says  he,  "thou  hadst  lived  long 
enough  in  the  world  not  to  pin  thy  happiness  upon  one 
that  is  a  woman  and  a  widow.  I  think  that  without 
vanity  I  may  pretend  to  know  as  much  of  the  female 
world  as  any  man  in  Great  Britain,  though  the  chief  of 
my  knowledge  consists  in  this,  that  they  are  not  to  be 
known."  Will  immediately,  with  his  usual  fluency,  ram- 
bled into  an  account  of  his  own  amours.  "I  am  now," 
says  he,  "upon  the  verge  of  fifty"  (though,  by  the  way, 
we  all  knew  he  was  turned  of  threescore) .  ' '  You  may 
easily  guess,"  continued  Will,  "  that  I  have  not  lived  so 
long  in  the  world  without  having  had  some  thoughts  of 
settling  in  it,  as  the  phrase  is.  To  tell  you  truly,  I  have 
several  times  tried  my  fortune  that  way,  though  I  can't 
much  boast  of  my  success. 

"I  made  my  first  addresses  to  a  young  lady  in  the 
country;  but  when  I  thought  things  were  pretty  well 
drawing  to  a  conclusion,  her  father  happening  to  hear 
that  I  had  formerly  boarded  with  a  surgeon,  the  old  put 
forbid  me  his  house,  and  within  a  fortnight  after  married 
his  daughter  to  a  foxhunter  in  the  neighborhood. 

"  I  made  my  next  applications  to  a  widow  and  at- 
tacked her  so  briskly  that  I  thought  myself  within  a 
fortnight  of  her.  As  I  waited  upon  her  one  morning, 
she  told  me  that  she  intended  to  keep  her  ready  money 
and  jointure  in  her  own  hand,  and  desired  me  to  call 
upon  her  attorney  in  Lyon's  Inn,  who  would  adjust  with 


152  FIRST    YEAR   ENGLISH 

me  what  it  was  proper  for  me  to  ud<l  to  it.  1  was  so 
rebuffed  by  this  overture  that  I  never  inquired  either 
for  her  or  her  attorney  afterwards. 

"  A  few  months  after  I  addressed  myself  to  a  young 
lady  who  was  an  only  daughter,  and  of  a  good  family.  I 
danced  with  her  at  several  balls,  squeezed  her  by  the 
hand,  said  soft  nothings  to  her.  and,  in  short,  made  no 
doubt  of  her  heart;  and,  though  my  fortune  was  not 
equal  to  hers,  I  was  in  hopes  that  her  fond  father  would 
not  deny  her  the  man  she  had  fixed  her  affections  upon. 
But  as  I  went  one  day  to  the  house  in  order  to  break  the 
matter  to  him,  I  found  the  whole  family  in  confusion, 
and  heard,  to  my  unspeakable  surprise,  that  Miss  Jenny 
was  that  very  morning  run  away  with  the  butler. 

''  I  then  courted  a  second  widow,  and  am  at  a  loss  to 
this  day  to  know  how  I  came  to  miss  her,  for  she  had 
often  commended  my  person  and  behaviour.  Her  maid, 
indeed,  told  me  one  day  that  her  mistress  had  said  she 
never  saw  such  a  spindle  pair  of  legs  as  Mr.  Honeycomb. 

"  After  this  I  laid  siege  to  four  heiresses  successively, 
and  being  a  handsome  young  dog  in  those  days,  quickly 
made  a  breach  in  their  hearts;  but  I  don't  know  how  it 
came  to  pass,  though  I  seldom  failed  of  getting  the  daugh- 
ters' consent,  I  could  never  in  my  life  get  the  old  people 
on  my  side. 

"I  could  give  you  an  account  of  a  thousand  other 
unsuccessful  attempts,  particularly  of  one  which  I  made 
some  years  since  upon  an  old  woman,  whom  I  had  cer- 
tainly borne  away  with  flying  colors,  if  her  relations  had 
not  come  pouring  in  to  her  assistance  from  all  parts  of 
England;  nay,  I  believe  I  should  have  got  her  at  last, 
had  she  not  been  carried  off  by  an  hard  frost." 

Addison.  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley  Papers. 


NARRATION  153 

For  narratives  told  in  order  of  climax  see  Browning's 
Tray  and  Campbell's  Lord  Ullin's  Daughter  given  in 
Chapter  II.  In  fact,  the  events  in  these  selections 
follow  both  the  time  order  and  the  order  of  climax. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
From   the   narratives  that  you  have  read  select   two 
(other  than  those  mentioned  above)  that  are  written  in 
order  of  time,  two  whose  events  follow  in  order  of  climax. 

(2) 
Point   out  a   place   in  Ivanhoe  or  in   Treasure  Island 
where  the  author  has  narrated  events  that  occurred  be- 
fore the  action  of  the  story  takes  place. 

(3) 
Arrange  the  following  events  in  time  order,  then  com- 
pare your  outline  with  Longfellow's  Paul  Revere's  Ride. 

1  Paul  Revere  said  "good-night"  to  his  friend  and  rowed 
to  the  Charlestown  shore. 

2  He  told  his  friend  to  hang  two  lanterns  in  the  North 
church  tower  if  the  British  left  the  town  by  sea  and  one  if  they 
went  by  land,  so  that  he  might  warn  the  people  of  the  Middlesex 
villages  and  farms. 

3  If  you  will  listen  you  may  hear  the  story  of  the  mid- 
night ride  of  Paul  Revere,  on  April  18,  1775. 

4  At  twelve  o'clock  he  rides  into  Medford  town. 

5  The  friend  watched  the  British  until  he  saw  them  march 
to  their  boats  on  the  shore. 

6  Paul  rides  through  the  village,  up  the  hill  and  along 
the  Mystic. 

7  Paul  sees  two  lamps  in  the  belfry. 

8  At  one  o'clock  he  galloped  into  Lexington. 


154  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

9    You  know  the  rest.     The  next  day  the  British  were  put 
to  flight  by  the  New  England  farmers. 

10  Paul's  friend  climbed  to  the  church  tower  to  Ught  the 
lamps. 

11  People  will  always  remember  the  midnight  ride  of  Paul 
Revere. 

12  At  two  by  the  village  clock  he  comes  to  the  Concord 
bridge. 

(4) 
Select  from  your  reading  three   stories  in  which    the 
interest  lies  chiefly  in  the  plot  or  action. 

53  Character.  The  cliaracters  in  narration  may  be 
almost  anything, —  men,  beasts,  plants,  machines,  stones, 
etc.  If  persons,  they  may  seem  like  real,  live  creatures, 
or  mere  mouthpieces  for  the  opinions  of  the  author. 
They  may  be  the  same  people  at  the  end  of  tlie  story 
that  they  are  at  the  beginning,  or  they  may  have 
changed  or  developed,  advanced  or  retrograded.  We 
may  become  acquainted  with  them  from  what  they  do, 
what  they  saj^  what  they  love  most,  how  they  feel 
toward  others,  or  what  others  think  and  say  about  them. 
Into  your  own  compositions  try  to  introduce  real  people. 
Study  the  persons  about  you  and  put  them  into  your 
stories. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

What  character  in  Ivanhoe,  Quentin  Durward  or  Treas- 
ure Island  do  you  like  best  ?    Discuss  this  question  in  class. 

Write  a  brief  summary  giving  your  own  opinion  and 
telling  what  the  character  says  and  does  that  you  like. 


^STARRATION  155 

(2) 
Give  an  oral  account  of  a  character  taken  from  As  You 
Like  It,  and  tell  what  conclusions  j^ou  di-aw  about  the 
kind  of  person  he  (or  she)  was.  Other  members  of  the 
class  should  discuss  the  correctness  of  your  subject  matter 
and  the  inferences  you  have  drawn. 

(3) 
Name  a  character  in  the  literature  that  you  have 
studied  this  year  which  impresses  you  as  being  a  real 
person.  Remember  that  no  person  in  real  life  is  wholly 
good  or  wholly  bad.  Mention  traits  of  character  or  inci- 
dents in  the  story  that  justify  your  conclusion. 

(4) 
Who  is  the  real  heroine  of  Ivanhoe,  Rebecca  or  Rowena  ? 
Who  is  the  hero  of  Treasure  Island  ? 

(5) 
Find  three  stories  in  which  you  think  the  chief  inter- 
est lies  in  the  characters  rather  than  in  the  plot. 

54  Setting.  Time  and  place  are  the  two  main  as- 
pects of  the  setting.  Every  narration,  no  matter  how 
simple,  should  have  a  definite  time  and  a  place  for  the 
background  of  its  action,  and  the  author  should  bear 
these  always  in  mind,  in  order  that  the  characters 
and  the  action  be  not  incongruous  with  the  setting. 
A  knight  of  the  twelfth  century  would  hardly  be  ex- 
pected to  think  or  act  as  a  man  of  the  twentieth  cen- 
tury. The  street  arab's  actions  and  views  of  life  differ 
widely  from  those  of  the  carefully  reared  child  of  afflu- 
ence. The  setting  for  a  Christmas  story  would  scarcely 
be  the  same  as  for  a  Fourth  of  July  story. 


156  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Work  out   the  setting  of  each  of   the  following  with 
which  you  are   familiar,  writing   down  each    phrase  or 
sentence  that  gives  information  concerning  the  time  or 
place  of  the  action: 

Battle  of  Lake  Regillus  Prophecy  of  Capys 

\'ir(rini;i  Ivanhoe,  Chap.  I 

The  Raven  The  Ancient  Mariner 

Sohrab  and  Kustuni  The  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal 

Quentin  Durward,  Chap.  II  The  Courtship  of  Miles  Standish 

(2) 
Briefly  outline  the  setting  in  each  of  two  stories  from 
your  supplementary  reading. 

55  Purpose.  The  general  trend  of  a  narrative  is 
often  determined  by  the  aim  or  purpose  of  the  author. 
The  narration  wTitten  with  the  sole  desire  to  please  or 
amuse  naturally  differs  from  the  one  written  with  the 
covert  idea  of  teaching  some  moral  truth.  In  writing  a 
narrative  the  author  usually  has  some  objective  point 
which  he  desires  to  reach,  some  final  situation  that  he 
strives  to  bring  about.  For  instance,  the  underlying 
thought  in  the  Vision  of  Sir  Launfal  is  brought  out  in 
the  following  lines : 

'Tis  not  what  we  give,  but  what  we  share. 
For  the  gift  without  the  giver  is  bare. 

In  this  case  the  quotation  given  constitutes  the  main 
theme  of  the  narrative.  The  author's  purpose  in  writ- 
ing the  story  is  evidently  to  teach  this  truth. 

In  the  Legend  of  Sleepy  Hollow,  Irving's  desire  is 


NARRATION  157 

mainly  to  relate  a  pleasing  story,  at  the  same  time  mak- 
ing us  better  acquainted  with  the  old  Dutch  burghers 
and  their  customs.  The  main  theme  or  central  thought 
is  the  fortunes  of  Ichabod  Crane. 

EXERCISE 

Point  out  the  central  thought  or  main  theme  and  the 
author's  purpose  in  each  of  the  following  that  you  have 
read: 

.\ncient  Mariner  As  You  Like  It 

Ivanhoe  Horatius 

Virginia  Midsummer  Night's  Dream 

Treasure  Island  Story  of  Justice,  Evangeline 

The  Raven  (See  p.  30.) 

56   Pictures  in  stories  and  stories  in  pictures.      We 

have  learned  that  a  narration  may  be  considered  as  a 
series  of  pictures.  Every  time  the  scene  is  changed  a 
new  mental  image  must  be  formed.  Whenever  a  char- 
acter does  anything,  some  change  in  the  picture  is  ne- 
cessary. In  the  Vision  of  Sir  Launjal  the  follo\\ing 
pictures  stand  out  clearly: 

The  picture  of  summer,  and  the  castle. 

The  knight,  starting  on  his  quest,  throws  a  piece  of 
gold  to  the  leper. 

The  leper  indignantly  spurns  the  coin. 

The  picture  of  the  castle  in  winter. 

The  forlorn  old  man  returns  to  find  himself  an  outcast. 

He  shares  his  crust  with  the  beggar,  and,  breaking  the 
ice  in  the  brook,  gives  him  to  drink. 

The  beggar  is  transformed  into  the  Christ. 

The  castle  with  open  doors,  wherein  poor  and  lowly 
are  welcome. 


168  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

Any  one  of  these  scenes  forms  a  complete  picture. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  often  follows  that  a  picture  will 
suggest  a  story  to  our  minds.  Even  a  bare  statement, 
such  as,  "They  were  lost  in  the  forest,"  may  suggest 
both  a  picture  and  a  story.  The  questions,  ^^^lo 
were  they?  AVTiere  were  they  going?  How  did  they 
happen  to  wander  from  the  road?  What  did  they  say 
to  each  other,  when  they  discovered  their  plight?  How 
were  they  finally  rescued?  ^^'hat  did  they  say  when 
they  were  safe?  if  answered  would  form  a  narrative 
suggested  by  the  statement.  No  two  people  might 
answer  these  questions  in  the  same  way,  but  each  might 
form  a  good  narrative. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Write  the  story  suggested  above. 

(2) 
Tabulate  the  series  of  pictures  in  any  tivo  of  the  stories 
mentioned  in  the  exercise  on  page  156. 

(3) 
Make  five  statements,  each  of  which  suggests  a  story. 

(4) 
Expand   one   of   these  statements   by   asking  at  least 
eight  questions  suggested  by  it  and  form  a  narrative  with 
the  material  found  in  the  answers  to  these  questions. 

(5) 
Write  a  story  suggested    to   you    by    the   picture   on 
page  147. 


NARRATION  159 

(6) 
Write  a  story  suggested  by  one  of  the  following: 

A  child  fell  into  the  brook. 

A  cat  adopted  a  young  squirrel. 

A  boy  overhears  a  conversation  between  two  robbers. 

57  Unity  and  coherence.  These  two  qualities  are 
necessary  to  every  narrative.  A  story  must  be  a  unit. 
Each  event  must  help  to  further  the  development  of 
the  action  or  plot.     Those  events  which  lead  to  a  climax 


DIGRESSION 


and  are  really  essential  to  the  movement  may  be  illus- 
trated by  the  circle  in  the  accompanying  diagram. 
Whenever  incidents  are  introduced  which  do  not  belong 
to  the  main  series  of  events,  or  whenever  digressions  are 
made  for  the  sake  of  explaining  or  describing,  the  author 
may  be  said  to  be  proceeding  at  a  tangent  to  the  real 
plot.  For  instance,  in  Hawthorne's  Prophetic  Pictures  ^ 
no  account  of  the  wedding  of  Eleanor  and  Walter  is 
given.  Such  a  description  is  not  necessary  to  the  plot 
and  has  no  bearing  upon  the  theme  of  the  narrative. 

Avoid    introducing    such    side    issues.     The    writer 
should,  from  the  beginning,  have  the  end  clearly  in 

'  Suggested    for    supplementary    reading  —  see    outline    in 
preface. 


160  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

mind.  Each  scene  or  action  should  make  another  step 
toward  the  cUmax  or  end;  progress  toward  the  end 
should  be  consistent  from  the  beginning. 

Coherence  or  clearness  is  also  essential.  Not  only 
should  the  events  be  selected  with  reference  to  their 
part  in  the  main  thread  of  action,  but  they  should  be 
kept  in  such  logical  sequence  that  the  reader  cannot 
fail  to  grasp  the  trend  of  thought.  To  acconiphsh  this, 
the  writer  should  arrange  the  incidents  in  some  definite 
order  —  that  of  time,  cause  and  effect,  or  climax. 

Coherence  also  demands  that  the  writer  should  use 
simple,  direct  language.  Words  having  special  or 
technical  meanings  should  in  general  be  avoided,  but 
sometimes  they  may  be  used  to  good  advantage.  For 
instance,  too  liberal  a  use  of  technical  terms  in  a  football 
story  renders  the  narrative  obscure  to  the  general  reader, 
but  the  occasional  introduction  of  such  language  adds 
to  the  effect. 

The  purpose  or  motive  of  the  author  should  also  be 
clearly  brought  out.  Only  when  the  majority  of 
readers  understand  alike  the  purpose  and  meaning  of 
the  story,  is  the  narrative  said  to  be  clear  or  coherent. 

In  writing  or  reproducing  a  long  story,  Uke  Ivanhoe 
or  A  Tale  of  Two  Cities,  it  becomes  necessary  to  differen- 
tiate clearly  between  events  or  happenings  which  really 
further  the  main  plot,  and  incidents  or  actions  that  are 
attendant  upon,  but  subordinate  to,  the  main  thread  of 
action.  In  a  brief  outUne  or  reproduction  of  such  a 
story  it  is  impossible  to  give  all  the  details,  hence  it 
first  becomes  necessary  to  select  the  important  events 
of  the  plot.     Such  events,  if  cited  in  order,  form  a  con- 


NARRATION  161 

tinuous  chain,  each  action  being  dependent  upon  what 
has  preceded  it, 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Mention  in  order  the  most  important  events  in  Ivanhoe, 
Quentin  Durward  or  Treasure  Island.     Give  an  account 
of  any  one  of  them. 

(2) 
Mention  four  incidents  in  Ivanhoe,  Quentin  Durward  or 
Treasure  Isla7id.     Outhne  briefly  one  of  them. 

(3) 
Relate  a  humorous    incident   from  one  of  the  stories 
mentioned  above. 

(4) 

Write  in  the  form  of  a  letter  an  account  of  the  burn- 
ing of  a  large  hotel  or  public  building  in  your  town. 

Write  a  newspaper  account  of  the  same  fire. 

How  does  the  selection  of  details  differ  in  the  two 
accounts?  Does  your  narrative  in  each  case  have  unity 
and  coherence? 

58  Beginning  and  end  of  the  story.  One  exception 
there  is  to  this  law  of  coherence  or  sequence.  A  story 
may  begin  in  one  of  two  ways,  by  stating  the  time, 
place,  and  the  circumstances  under  which  the  action 
takes  place  —  that  is,  the  setting  —  or  by  plunging  at 
once  into  the  narrative  and  allowing  the  explanation  to 
be  given  later.  The  latter  method  is  much  used  and  is 
usually  successful.  In  this  manner  the  author  manages 
to  gain  his  reader's  interest  and  attention  at  once, 
whereas  in  the  former  case  many  are  prone  to  omit 


162  FIEST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

reading  the  descriptive  beginning  and  tiius  lose  entirely 
the  setting  of  the  story. 

The  end  of  a  narrative  is  usually  a  summary  or  a 
climax.  The  author  may,  especially  at  the  end  of  a 
series  of  events  written  in  time  order,  give  a  final  sum- 
ming up  of  the  results  brought  about  by  the  action  of 
the  story.  A  far  more  effective  conclusion,  however,  is 
provided  by  arranging  the  story  in  order  of  climax,  so 
that  the  most  striking  and  important  event  comes  last. 
Occasionally,  too,  the  author  leaves  the  reader  to  guess 
the  final  outcome,  as  in  Stockton's  The  Lady  or  tiie 
Tiger. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Write  in  the  first  person  an  account  of  what  you  did 
in  one  day,  observing  strict  time  order  and  supposing  that 
the  most  important  deed  came  early  in  the  day.  Pay 
particular  attention  to  the  conclusion. 

Write  another  similar  account,  in  which  the  most 
important  deed  comes  at  the  close  of  the  day. 

Which  account  is  more  effective? 

(2) 
In  the  picture  on  the  opposite  page  imagine  that  you  are 
in  the  balloon  and  write  a  narrative  of  the  events  of  your 
journey.     Pay  particular  attention  to  the  conclusion. 

(3) 
Write  a  short  narrative  on  "A  Visit  at  my  Grand- 
father's."    Begin  your  narrative  with  a  conversation,  or 
with  an  account  of  your  journey,  afterwards  telling  what 
occasioned  the  visit  at  that  particular  time. 


NAin?ATI()X 


IG^ 


Jidien  Ihipri 


104  Fiusr  vK.Mi  i:n(;i-1sh 

(4) 
Narrate  your  experiences  while  \(iu  were  learning  to 
skate.     In  yonr  coneliKsion  state   wlu'tlxT  you  think  the 
acc'on\])li5shniont  is  worth  tlie  etYort. 

(■^) 
Froiu  the  foUowiuj:  hints  write  a  nairative  containinf; 
direct  couveisation. 

You  have  plaiuiod  to  visit  a  ineiid  —  frroat  i)roparations 
made  for  your  eiUeitaiunient  — -one  of  your  faiuily  ill,  hut  not 
seriously  —  mother  tolls  you  to  decide  for  yourself  —  you 
write  two  letters,  one  telling  your  friend  when  you  will  come, 
the  other  sayinj;  you  must  postpone  your  visit — one  letter 
posted,  one  destroyed.  fI)o  not  tell  the  reader  whieh  letter 
you  sent,  but  let  him  infer  the  result  from  what  your  mother 
does  when  you  return  to  the  honse] 

(6) 
Write  a  l)rief  sketcli  of  the  life  of  Lowell.     Begin  by 
nientioning  his  death  and  the  value  of  liis  works. 

59  Paragraph  length.  Do  not  forget  that  every  nar- 
ration ol"  any  considerahlo  length  needs  an  introduc- 
tory and  a  concluding  j^aragraph.  These  are  usually 
short,  frequently  containing  but  two  or  three  well- 
constructed  sentences.  The  paragra{)hs  in  the  body 
of  the  story  should  usually  contain  from  one  liundred 
to  two  hundred  words,  excc})t  when  conversation  is 
reported.  Each  main  event,  uidess  very  long,  or  un- 
less conversation  is  introduced,  should  be  told  in  a 
single  paragraph.  Thus  the  paragraphs  will  correspond 
with  the  main  events  of  the  narrative.  The  student 
should  guard  against  writing  long   rand^ling  introduc- 


NARRATION  165 

tions.  Proportion  demands  that  the  introduction  should 
form  but  a  comparative!}^  small  part  of  the  composition. 
Emphasis  should  be  laid  either  upon  the  body  of  the 
story  or  upon  the  conclusion,  but  never  upon  the  in- 
troduction. 

Narrative  paragraphs  should  never  be  made  so  long 
as  to  become  tiresome,  neither  should  long,  involved 
sentences  be  tolerated.  As  we  have  already  observed, 
short  sentences  add  brightness  and  vivacity  to  a  narra- 
tive. They  are  said  to  accelerate  or  qficken  the 
movement  of  a  story.  The  worth  of  a  narrative  depends 
upon  its  power  to  please  and  entertain,  and  this  fact 
the  wTiter  should  always  bear  in  mind. 

MISCELLANEOUS   EXERCISES   ON  NARRATION 

In  the  following  exercises  pay  particular  attention  to 
sentence  structure,  paragraphing  and  arrangement  of 
material. 

(1) 

Complete  the  story  begun  in  the  model  on  page  29. 

(2) 
Narrate  an  incident  from  the  Odyssey  to  prove  that 
Ulysses  was  strong  or  that  Penelope  was  loyal. 

(3) 
Find  from  the  required  or  the  suggested  reading  an 
incident  to  illustrate  each  of  the  following:  bravery,  cour- 
tesy, loyalt}^,  self-sacrifice.     Outline  briefly  one  of  them, 

(4) 
Give  the  name  of  the  best  short  storj'  that  you  have 
read.     Mention   three  reasons  why   you   consider   it   the 
best. 


Itit)  FIKST   YKAK    ENGLISH 

(5) 
Which  was  the  braver  —  Horatius  or  Virginius  ?    Tell 
in  one  paragraph  upon  what  you  base  your  conclusion. 

(0) 
Relate  an  incident  from  Ivanhoe  to  prove  that   King 
John  was  treacherous,  or  from  Quentin  Durward  to  show 
tiiat    King    Louis    was   superstitious,    or    from    Treasure 
Island  to  prove  that  Dr.  Livesey  waa  brave. 

(7) 
Find  five  stories  in  which  the  setting  comes  first. 

Find  five  stories  giving  the  setting  after  tlie  beginning 
of  the  plot. 

(9) 

Relate  a  sad  incident  from  one  of  the  books  you  have 
read,  using  the  order  of  climax. 

(10) 
What  order  of  events  would  you  use  in  a  biography? 
Would  the  conclusion  be  a  summary  or  a  climax?     Could 
it  be  both?     Justify  your  conclusion  by  reference  to  some 
biography. 

ai) 

Point  out  what  order  of  events  is  used  in  two  of  the 
narratives  you  have  read  this  year. 

(12) 
Write  a  story  in   the    order  of   climax   based  on   the 
following:  A  boy  found  a  pocketbook  containing  $100. 
Does  your  story  also  follow  the  time  order? 

(13) 
In  your  own   opinion  which  is   stronger,  strict    time 
order  or  order  of  climax?     Support  your  conclusion  bv 


NARRATION  167 

references  to  stories  you  have  read  this  year.  [So  many 
narratives  involve  both  orders  that  you  will  need  to  be 
careful  in  your  selection.] 

(14) 
Find  three  stories  from  your  supplementary  reading 
that  follow  the  order  of  climax. 

(15) 
What  were  the  qualities  of  knightliness  as  shown  in 
Ivanhoe  or  Quentin  Durward  f     Relate  an  incident  justi- 
fying your  choice  of  one  of  the  characteristics  named- 

(16) 
Reproduce  the  story  of  Horatius,  basing  your  account 
upon  the  following  outline: 

1  Introduction  —  Lars  Porsena  approaches  Rome 

2  Horatius  offers  to  hold  the  bridge 

3  The  fight  at  the  bridge 

4  The  retreat  of  the  other  two  Romans 
0  Horatius  swims  the  Tiber 

6   Conclusion  — ■  reward 

How  many  paragraphs  should  the  essay  contain? 

(17) 
Following   the   method   indicated    above,   prepare   an 
outline  and  reproduce  the  story  of  one  of  the  following: 
The  Ancient  Mariner,   The   Vision  of  Sir  Laimfal,    The 
Battle  of  Lake  RegiUus,  Sohrab  and  Rustum. 

(18) 
Select  from  your  supplementary   reading  a  story  for 
reproduction.     Cite  the  most  important  events  and  make 
a  topical  outline,  each  main  division  of  which  shall  repre- 
sent  one  of   these   events.      Then  reproduce  the   story, 


lbs  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

making  the  paragraphs  of  your  essay  correspond  with 
the  main  divisions  of  your  outhne. 

(19) 
Group   according    to    the   threads   of   action   all    the 
characters  mentioned  in  the  items  given  l>elow  and  others 
tiiat  might  be  introduced  into  the  stor>': 

Poor  little  boy  finds  Ix^autiful  trick  dog;  the  two  Ijecome 
friends;  boy  trios  to  find  dnjj's  owner;  or«rnn  grinder  pretends  to 
own  dog;  he  uses  it  to  earn  money;  the  real  owner,  rich  man's 
little  daughter,  is  heart-broken  over  loss;  boy  discovers  real 
owner;  organ  grimier  arrested. 

Write  a  narrative  based  on  the  above;  inelude  at  least 
two  conversations. 

(20) 
Select  one  of  your  own  narratives  for  criticism.  Has 
each  sentence  unity  and  is  it  clear  or  coherent?  Is  each 
paragraph  a  unit?  State  the  theme  or  central  thought 
of  each  paragraph.  Do  the  events  chosen  form  a  con- 
tinuous chain  or  line  of  action?  Have  you  introduced 
a  climax  and  a  moment  of  suspense?  Have  you  in- 
cluded any  incidents  that  are  connected  with,  but  do  not 
further,  the  plot?  Have  you  a  good  introduction  and 
conclusion?  What  is  the  aim  or  purpose  of  your  story? 
State  the  theme.  Have  you  introduced  direct  conversa- 
tion into  your  narrative?  If  so.  is  it  paragraphed  anrl 
punctuated  correctly?  Do  you  think  the  interest  lies 
chiefly  in  the  plot  or  in  the  characters? 


CHAPTER  VII 

DESCRIPTION 

Words  are  but  pictures,  true  or  false  design 'd, 
To  draw  the  lines  and  features  of  the  mind. 

Butler. 

60  Definition.  We  have  seen  in  the  preceding 
chapter  that  narration  is  a  series  of  pictures  arranged 
in  order  of  time.  Any  one  of  these  may  be  the  form  of 
composition  which  is  called  a  description.  In  other 
words,  description  is  a  word  picture  of  some  object, 
person  or  scene.  This  form  of  writing  seldom  occurs 
alone;  it  is  usually  found  as  a  part  of  a  narration.  It 
is  of  great  value  in  narration,  for  it  aids  in  giving  a 
realistic  setting  to  the  story  and  is  indispensable  in  con- 
veying to  the  reader  distinct  impressions  of  the  charac- 
ters of  the  narrative. 

61  Kinds  of  description.  Description,  broadly  clas- 
sified, is  of  two  kinds  —  circumstantial  and  impressional. 
The  former  aims  to  present  details  only,  the  latter  to 
convey  an  impression.  Circumstantial  description  gives 
a  detailed  picture  of  the  object  or  scene  as  it  actually 
is;  impressional  description,  as  it  appears  to  the  eye  of 
the  author,  or  rather,  as  it  appeals  to  his  emotions. 
The  first  kind  affords  exact  information,  the  second 
creates  for  the  reader  an  impressive  picture. 

Notice  the  difference  in  the  descriptions  given  below. 
WTiich  gives  the  better  picture?  Which  proceeds  in 
more  logical  order? 

169 


170  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

He  IS  a  middle-aged  spare  man.  about  forty  years  oKl, 
of  a  brown  coniploxion.  ami  dark  brown  colored  iiair,  but 
wears  a  wig;  he  has  a  hooked  nose,  a  sluirp  chin,  gray 
eyes,  and  a  large  mole  near  his  mouth.     [Circumstantial.] 

An  ivor\'-faced  and  silver)'-haired  old  woman  opened 
the  door.  She  had  an  evil  face,  smoothed  by  hypocrisy, 
but  her  manners  were  excellent,     [hnpratsional.] 

In  came  Mrs.  Fezziwig,  one  vast  substantial  smile. 
[Impressional.] 

The  afternoon  sun  wa.s  warm  on  the  live  workmen 
there,  busy  upon  doors  and  window-frmnes  and  wains- 
coting. A  scent  of  pine  wood  from  a  tent-like  pile  of 
planks  outside  the  i)pen  door  mingleil  itself  with  the 
scent  of  the  elder  bushes  which  were  spreading  their 
summer  snow  close  to  the  open  window  opposite;  the 
slanting  sunbeams  shone  through  the  transparent  shav- 
ings that  flew  before  the  steady  plane,  and  lit  up  the  fine 
grain  of  the  oak  paneling  which  stood  propj^ed  against 
the  wall.  On  a  heap  of  tho.sc  soft  shavings  a  rough  gray 
shepherd-dog  had  made  himself  a  pleasant  bed,  and  was 
lying  with  his  nose  between  his  forepaws,  occasionally 
wrinkling  his  brows  to  cast  a  glance  at  the  tallest  of  the 
five  workmen,  who  was  carving  a  shield  in  the  center  of 
a  wooden  mantel  piece.     [Circumstantial.] 

Ellen's  Isle,  situated  at  the  foot  of  the  beautiful  Loch 
Katrine,  is  a  small  island  containing  two  or  three  acres  of 
land  rising  abruptly  from  the  water  to  a  height  of  from 
twenty-five  to  fifty  feet.  It  is  covered  with  a  thick 
undergrowth  of  shrubbery,  ferns,  honeysuckle,  and 
heather,  with  a  few  native  birches  and  pines.  The  land- 
ing is  in  a  slight  recess  hidden  by  trees.  The  ascent  is 
up  a  steep  bank,  the  roots  of  the  trees  forming  steps  in 
the  winding  path.     [Circumstantial] 


DESCRIPTION  171 

In  an  impressional  description  there  is  usually  one 
main  characteristic  that  stands  out  more  boldly  than 
any  of  the  others,  or  a  oneness  of  effect  to  which  all  the 
details  contribute.  A  description  may  be  composed  of 
details  which  in  themselves  are  circumstantial,  but  if 
these  details  are  so  presented  as  to  contribute  to  a  single 
impression  the  description  as  a  whole  will  be  impres- 
sional. 

A  description  containing  details  that  suggest  color, 
form,  hght,  sound,  odor,  etc.,  but  do  not  definitely  outline 
a  picture  to  the  reader,  is  said  to  be  suggestive.  [See 
"Echoing  Footsteps,"  Chapter  XXI,  A  Tale  of  Two 
Cities.]  Such  a  composition  may  be  either  impressional 
or  circumstantial,  according  to  the  motive  or  purpose 
of  the  author  and  his  ability  to  realize  that  purpose  in 
his  composition. 

The  following  selection  illustrates  a  suggestive  im- 
pressional description.  No  definite  instructive  details 
are  given,  no  picture  is  clearly  outlined;  each  item  is 
suggestive.  The  whole  selection,  however,  gives  the  im- 
pression of  the  quiet  watchfulness  of  nature,  although 
the  first  three  lines  approach  circumstantial  description. 
We  feel  the  atmosphere  of  the  description  instead  of 
seeing  a  picture  boldly  outlined. 

The  fishes  slumbered  in  the  cold,  bright,  glistening 
streams  and  rivers,  perhaps;  and  the  birds  roosted  on  the 
branches  of  the  trees;  and  in  their  stalls  and  pastures 
beasts  were  quiet;  and  human  creatures  slept.  But  what 
of  that,  when  the  solemn  night  was  watching,  when  it 
never  winked ,  when  its  darkness  watched  no  less  than  its 
light!     The  stately  trees,  the  moon  and  shining  stars,  the 


172  FIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

softly  stirring  wind,  the  overshadowed  lane,  the  broad, 
bright  country-side,  they  all  kept  watch.  There  was  not 
a  blade  of  growing  grass  or  corn,  but  watched;  and  the 
quieter  it  was,  the  more  intent  and  fixed  its  watch  upon 
him  seemed  to  be. 

Compare  the  description  given  above  with  the  follow- 
ing, which,  although  suggestive,  leaves  no  one  distinct 
impression  upon  the  reader.  The  picture,  however,  is 
more  distinct  than  in  the  preceding. 

Whoever  has  made  a  voyage  up  the  Hudson,  must 
remember  the  Kaatskill  mountains.  They  are  a  di.^mem- 
bered  branch  of  the  great  Appalachian  family  and  are 
.seen  away  to  the  west  of  the  river,  swelling  up  to  a  noble 
height,  and  lording  it  over  the  surrounding  country. 
Every  change  of  season,  every  change  of  weather,  indeed 
every  hour  of  the  day,  produces  some  change  in  the 
magical  hues  and  shapes  of  these  mountains;  and  they 
are  regarded  by  all  the  good  wives,  far  and  near,  as  per- 
fect barometers.  When  the  weather  is  fair  and  settled, 
they  are  clothed  in  blue  and  purple,  and  print  their  bold 
outlines  on  the  clear  evening  sky;  but  sometimes,  when 
the  rest  of  the  landscape  is  cloudless,  they  will  gather  a 
hood  of  gray  vapors  about  their  summits,  which,  in  the 
last  rays  of  the  setting  sun,  will  glow  and  light  up  like  a 
crown  of  glorv. 

At  the  foot  of  these  fairy  mountains,  the  voyager  may 
have  descried  the  light  smoke  curling  up  from  a  village, 
whose  shingle  roofs  gleam  among  the  trees,  just  where  the 
blue  tints  of  the  upland  melt  nw;iv  into  the  fresh  green 
of  the  nearer  landscape. 

Irving.  Rip  Van  Winkle. 


DESCRIPTION  173 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

Then  think  I  of  deep  shadows  on  the  grass, 
Of  meadows  where  in  sun  the  cattle  graze, 

Where,  as  the  breezes  pass, 
The  gleaming  rushes  lean  a  thousand  ways, 

Of  leaves  that  slumber  in  a  cloudy  mass, 
Or  whiten  in  the  wind,  of  waters  blue 
That  from  the  distance  sparkle  through 
Some  woodland  gap,  and  of  a  sky  above. 
Where  one  white  cloud  hke  a  stray  lamb  doth  move. 

Lowell,  To  the  Dandelion. 

Is  this  description,  as  a  whole,  circumstantial  or  im- 
pressional?     Give  reasons  for  your  decision. 

(2) 
Classify  as  impressional  or  circumstantial  each  para- 
graph of  the  description  In  Granada  beginning  on  page 
58.     Give  a  reason  for  your  decision  in  each  case. 

(3) 
Imitating  the  circumstantial  description  of  Defoe,  on 
page  170,  describe  a  person  of  your  acquaintance. 

(4) 
Write  a  circumstantial  description  of  your  schoolhouse 
as  it  would  appear  to  a  person  standing  directly  in  front 
of  it. 

(5) 
Write    an    impressional   description  of  a  snow  storm. 
[Suppose  you  are  indoors,  looking  out  of  a  window  at  the 
storm.] 

62   Point  of  view.     Especially  in  circumstantial  de- 
scription, the  aim  of  which  is  to  give  information,  it  is 


174  FIRST    YEAR   .KNGLISII 

necessary  for  the  writer  to  choose  some  one  standpoint 
from  which  to  observe  the  object  in  question.  A  build- 
ing, a  landscape,  a  human  face,  a  chair,  a  cube,  etc.,  all 
appear  different  when  viewed  from  different  standpoints. 
A  cubical  or  prismatical  object  viewed  from  a  point 
diagonally  opposite  presents  an  appearance  consider- 
ably at  variance  with  that  observed  from  a  point 
directly  in  front  of  one  of  its  faces. 

This  standpoint  chosen  by  the  writer  is  known  as 
the  point  of  view.  If  it  becomes  necessary,  a,s  it  some- 
times does,  to  shift  the  point  of  view  in  order  to  obtain 
a  more  complete  picture,  the  author  should  indicate 
that  such  a  change  is  to  be  made,  that  he  may  prevent 
the  reader  from  becoming  confused  and  losing  the  dis- 
tinct impression.  The  point  of  view,  like  the  topic  of  a 
paragraph,  is  frequently  stated  in  the  first  sentence  of 
the  description.  It  thus  gives  the  reader  at  once  a 
definite  grasp  of  the  situation  and  forms  a  good  intro- 
duction. 

Read  carefully  the  following  specimens  of  description, 
classifying  each  as  inipressional  or  circumstantial  and 
indicating  the  point  of  \\v\y.  Does  the  point  of  view 
in  any  one  paragraph  change?  Point  out  the  suggestive 
details. 

Up  the  broad  flight  of  shallow  steps,  monsieur  the 
marquis,  flambeau  preceded,  went  from  his  carriage, 
sufficiently  disturbing  the  darkness  to  elicit  loud  remon- 
strance from  an  owl  in  the  roof  of  the  great  pile  of  stable 
building  away  among  the  trees.  All  else  was  so  quiet 
that  the  flambeau  can-ied  up  the  steps  and  the  other 
flambeau  held  at  the  jrreat  door  burnt  as  if  thev  were  in 


DESCRIPTION  175 

a  close  room  of  state  instead  of  being  in  the  open  night- 
air.  Other  sound  than  the  owFs  voice  there  was  none, 
save  the  faUing  of  a  fountain  into  its  stone  basin;  for  it 
was  one  of  those  dark  nights  that  hold  their  breath  by 
the  hour  together,  and  then  heave  a  long  low  sigh,  and 
hold  their  breath  again. 

Dickens,  A  Tale  of  Two  Cities. 

The  two  selections  following  are  descriptions  of  the 
same  valley.  Note  how  the  pictures  which  they  give 
us  differ,  the  choice  and  arrangement  of  details  being 
determined  by  the  point  of  view. 

(A) 

The  chine  of  highland  whereon  we  stood,  curved  to 
the  right  and  left  of  us,  keeping  about  the  same  eleva- 
tion, and  crowned  with  trees  and  brushwood.  At  about 
half  a  mile  in  front  of  us,  but  looking  as  if  we  could 
throw  a  stone  to  strike  any  man  upon  it,  another  crest, 
just  like  our  own,  bowed  around  to  meet  it;  but  failed  by 
reason  of  two  narrow  clefts  of  which  we  could  only  see 
the  brink.  One  of  these  clefts  was  the  Doone-gate,  with 
a  portcullis  of  rock  above  it;  and  the  other  was  the 
chasm,  by  which  I  had  once  made  entrance.  Betwixt 
them,  where  the  hills  fell  back,  as  in  a  perfect  oval,  trav- 
ersed by  the  winding  water,  lay  a  bright  green  valley, 
rimmed  with  sheer  black  rock,  and  seeming  to  have 
sunken  bodily  from  the  bleak  rough  heights  above.  It 
looked  as  if  no  frost  could  enter,  neither  winds  go  ruffling; 
only  spring  and  hope  and  comfort  breathe  to  one  an- 
other. Even  now  the  rays  of  sunshine  dwelt,  and  fell 
back  themselves,  whenever  the  clouds  lifted;  and  the 
pale  blue  glimpse  of  the  growing  day  seemed  to  find 
young  encouragement. 


ITt)  FIRST    YEAR   ENGLISH 

(B) 

A  very  rougii  und  lieadstrong  road  wuj>  all  that  she 
remembered,  for  she  could  not  think  as  she  wished  to  do 
with  the  cold  iron  pushed  against  her.  At  the  end  of 
this  road  they  delivered  her  eyes,  and  she  could  scarce 
believe  them. 

For  she  stood  at  tlic  head  of  a  deep  green  valley, 
carved  from  out  the  mountains  in  a  perfect  oval  with  a 
fence  of  sheer  rock  standinj:  round  it,  eif^hty  feet  or  a 
hundred  high;  from  whose  brink  black  wooded  hills  swept 
up  to  the  sky-line.  By  her  side  a  little  river  glided  out 
from  underground  with  a  soft  dark  babble,  unawares  of 
daylight;  then,  growing  brighter,  lapsed  away,  and  fell 
into  the  valley.  There,  as  it  ran  down  the  meadow, 
alders  stood  on  either  marge,  and  gra.ss  was  blading  out 
upon  it.  and  yellow  tufts  of  rushes  gathered,  looking  at 
the  hurry.  But  further  down,  on  either  bank,  were  cov- 
ered houses,  built  of  stone,  square  and  roughly  cornered, 
set  as  if  the  brook  were  meant  to  be  the  street  between 
them.  Only  one  room  high  they  were,  and  not  placed 
opposite  each  other,  but  in  and  out  as  skittles  are;  only 
that  the  first  of  all,  which  proved  to  be  the  captain's,  was 
a  sort  of  double  house,  or  rather,  two  houses  joined  to- 
gether by  a  plank  bridge  over  the  river. 

Blackmore,  Lorna  Doone. 


EXERCISE 

(1) 
Write  a  circumstantial  description  of  your  schoolhouse 
from  a  point  of  view  diagonally  placed.     Compare   this 
description  with  the  one  written  in  answer  to  the  fourth 
question  under  the  preceding  exercise. 


DESCRIPTION  177 

(2) 
Write  a  description  conveying  the  impression  of  hurry 
and  confusion.     [Take  the  scene  from  a  bridge  on  a  sum- 
mer day.] 

(3) 
Write  a  description  of  an  old  man  and  a  child  sitting 
by  a  fire. 

(4) 
Write  (a)  a  circumstantial  description  of  winter,  (b)  an 
impressional  description  of  spring.     Try  to  use   details 
that  are  suggestive, 

(5) 
Write  a  description  of  a  moving  train. 

(6) 
Suppose  you  are  riding  on  the  train.     Describe  some 
of  the  things  you  see  as  you  pass  along. 

(7) 

Taking  a  point  of  view  in  some  window  or  tower,  de- 
scribe the  scenes  that  you  see  below.  [See  In  Granada, 
page  58.] 

(8) 

Write  a  description  conveying  the  impression  of  peace- 
ful stillness. 

(9) 

Write  a  description  of  a  valley,  containing  a  river 
and  a  village,  as  it  would  appear  to  an  observer  high 
up  on  one  of  the  surrounding  hills.  Write  a  second  de- 
scription taking  as  a  point  of  view  the  belfry  of  one  ol 
the  church  towers.  Which  description  should  contain 
general  items  and  which  one  distinct  and  comparatively 
minute  details? 


178  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

63  Arrangement  of  details.  Next  in  importance  to 
the  choice  of  a  point  of  view  is  the  arrangement  of  the 
details  in  logical  order.  In  actual  vision,  we  observe 
things  first  as  wholes,  then  as  parts.  Follow  this  in 
your  descriptions.  Give  the  general  outline,  then  pro- 
ceed to  more  minute  details;  or,  begin  at  some  definite 
point  and  enumerate  the  details  in  logical  order  as  you 
proceed  from  the  near  to  the  distant,  from  right  to  left 
or  vice  versa.  The  importance  of  place  words,  such  as, 
in  the  joreground,  in  the  background,  at  the  side,  at  the 
right,  to  the  left,  in  the  center,  near  which,  above  which, 
around  which,  beside  ivhich,  below  which,  farther  off, 
across,  along,  at  the  foot  of  which,  etc.,  must  not  be  over- 
looked. These  materially  aid  in  locating  the  objects 
in  a  picture.  They  serve  to  give  the  reader  ''  his  bear- 
ings "  in  the  land  to  which  Ave  would  in  imagination 
conduct  him. 

Diagrams  are  of  special  aid  in  establishing  in  the  mind 
of  the  reader  definite  relations  between  objects  or  parts 
of  an  object.  Descriptions  which  are  circumstantial 
and  which  aim  to  give  exact  information  are  frequently 
incomplete  without  diagrams. 

Note  the  use  of  the  diagram  in  the  following  descrip- 
tion from  Victor  Hugo's  Les  Miserables: 

Those  who  would  get  a  clear  idea  of  the  battle  of 
Waterloo  have  only  to  lay  down  upon  the  ground  in  their 
mind  a  capital  A.  The  left  stroke  of  the  A  is  the  road 
from  Nivelles,  the  right  stroke  is  the  road  from  Genappe, 
the  cross  of  the  A  is  the  sunken  road  from  Chain  to  Braine- 
I'Alleud.  The  top  of  the  A  is  Mont  St.  Jean,  Welling- 
ton is  there;  the  left-hand  lower  point  is  Hougomont, 


DESCRIPTION  179 

Reille  is  there  with  Jerome  Bonaparte;  tlie  right-hand 
lower  point  is  La  Belle  Alliance,  Napoleon  ^is  there.  A 
little  below  the  point  where  the  cross  of  the  A  meets  and 
cuts  the  right  stroke  is  La  Haie  Sainte.  At  the  middle  of 
this  cross  is  the  precise  point  where  the  final  battle  word 
was  spoken.  There  the  lion  is  placed,  the  involuntary 
symbol  of  the  supreme  heroism  of  the  imperial  guard. 

The  triangle  contained  at  the  top  of  the  A  between 
the  two  strokes  and  the  cross  is  the  plateau  of  Mont  St. 
Jean.  The  struggle  for  this  plateau  was  the  whole  of 
the  battle. 

The  wings  of  the  two  armies  extended  to  the  right 
and  left  of  the  two  roads  from  Genappe  and  from  Nivelles; 
Erion  being  opposite  Picton,  Reille  opposite  Hill. 

Behind  the  point  of  the  A,  behind  the  plateau  of  Mont 
St.  Jean,  is  the  forest  of  the  Soignes. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Describe  the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  using   a    diagram 
representing  the  field  and  the  position   of   the  opposing 
forces. 

(2) 
Draw  a  diagram  indicating  the  relative  position  of  the 
objects  described  in  the  following: 

Near  to  the  bank  of  the  river,  o'ershadowed  by  oaks  from  whose 

branches 
Garlands  of  Spanish  moss  and  of  mystic  mistletoe  flaunted,  .  .  . 
Stood,  secluded  and  still,  the  house  of  the  herdsman.     A  garden 
Girded  it  round  about  with  a  belt  of  luxuriant  blossoms, 
Filling  the  air  with  fragrance.  .  .  . 

At  each  end  of  the  house,  amid  the  flowers  of  the  garden, 
Stationed  the  dovecots  were.  .  .  . 


180  FIRST   YKAK    KNGLlSlI 

What  is  the  most  important  object  in  this  picture?  Do 
you  consider  it  mainly  impressional  or  circumstantial? 

(3) 

Reproduce  orally  the  ftillowinp;  description  of  Cedric's 
dining  hall,  basing  your  description  on  the  letter  T. 

F'or  about  one  quarter  of  the  length  of  the  apartment,  the 
floor  was  raised  by  a  step,  and  this  space,  which  was  called  the 
dais,  was  orcupicd  only  by  the  i)rincipal  members  of  the  family, 
and  visitors  of  distinction.  For  this  j^urpose  a  table  richly 
covered  with  scarlet  cloth  was  placed  transversely  across  the 
platform,  from  the  middle  of  which  ran  the  longer  and  lower 
board,  at  which  the  domestics  and  inferior  persons  fed,  down 
toward  the  bottom  of  the  hall.  The  whole  resembled  the  form 
of  the  letter  T  or  some  of  those  ancient  dinner-tables  which, 
arranged  on  *^he  same  principles,  may  be  still  seen  in  the  an- 
tique colleges  of  Oxford  or  Cambridge.  Massive  chairs  and 
settles  of  carved  oak  were  placed  upon  the  dais,  and  over  these 
seats  and  the  more  elevated  table  was  fastened  a  canopy  of 
cloth,  which  served  in  some  degree  to  protect  the  dignitaries 
who  occupied  that  distinguished  station  from  the  weather  and 
especially  from  the  rain,  which  in  some  places  found  its  way 
through  the  ill-constructed  roof. 

Scott,  Ivanhoe. 
(4) 

Draw  a  diagram  of  some  room  the  details  of  which 
you  recall,  indicating  where  certain  articles  of  furniture 
are  placed.  Then  describe  the  room,  referring  to  the 
diagram  for  the  location  of  the  objects. 

(5) 

Write  a  description  of  a  landscape,  making  use  of  some 
of  the  place  words  mentioned  above.  Choose  a  definite 
pouit  of  view  and  give  the  general  outline  first. 


DESCRIPTION  181 

64  Comparison  and  contrast.  One  of  the  best  ways 
of  describing  an  object  is  to  compare  it  with  others. 
Many  of  our  common  expressions,  ''  as  quick  as  a  flash," 
"  as  bright  as  a  dollar,"  etc.,  are  founded  on  comparison. 
Contrast,  which  is  comparison  of  unlike  things,  is  also  a 
great  aid.  In  describing  form  or  shape,  or  telUng  our 
own  feelings,  we  are  usually  compelled  to  resort  to  com- 
parison, using  such  expressions,  for  instance,  as,  "  a  T 
square,"  "  wedge  shaped,"  "  the  mouth  of  a  stream," 
"  as  happy  as  a  lark,"  "  as  brave  as  a  hon." 

The  effectiveness  of  the  preludes  in  The  Vision  of 
Sir  Launfal  is  largely  due  to  the  sharp  contrast  between 
summer  and  wdnter.  The  following  brief  selections 
illustrate  the  use  of  comparison  and  contrast. 

Read  carefully  the  following: 

And  as  afield  the  reapers  cut  a  swath 
Down  through  the  middle  of  a  rich  man's  corn, 
And  on  each  side  are  squares  of  standing  corn, 
And  in  the  midst  a  stubble,  short  and  bare — 
So  on  each  side  were  squares  of  men,  with  spears 
Bristling,  and  in  the  midst,  the  open  sand. 

Arnold,  Sohrab  and  Rustum. 

The  drawbridge  dropped  with  a  surly  clang. 
And  through  the  dark  arch  a  charger  sprang. 
Bearing  Sir  Launfal,  the  maiden  knight, 
In  his  gilded  mail,  that  flamed  so  bright 
It  seemed  the  dark  castle  had  gathered  all 
Those  shafts  the  fierce  sun  had  shot  over  its  wall 

In  his  siege  of  three  hundred  summers  long, 
And,  binding  them  all  in  one  blazing  sheaf. 


lii'2  FIRST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

Had  cast  them  forth:  so,  young  ami  strong, 
And  lightsome  as  a  locust-leaf. 
Sir  Launfal  flashed  forth  in  his  maiden  mail, 
To  seek  in  all  climes  for  the  Holy  Grail. 

Sir  Launfal  turned  from  his  own  hard  gate, 

For  another  heir  in  his  earldom  sate; 

An  old,  bent  man,  worn  out  and  frail, 

He  came  back  from  seeking  the  Holy  Grail; 

Little  he  recked  of  his  earldom's  loss. 

No  more  on  his  surcoat  was  blazoned  the  cross, 

But  deep  in  his  soul  the  sign  he  wore, 

The  badge  of  the  suffering  and  the  poor. 

In  the  two  stanzas  quoted  above,  notice  the  com- 
parison between  the  reflection  from  his  armor  and  a 
sheaf  of  arrows;  also,  ncte  the  sharp  contrast  that 
Lowell  brings  out  between  Sir  Launfal's  departure  and 
return. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Contrast  a  poor  boy  with  a  rich  boy, 

(2) 
Describe  a  large  building  bj'^  comparing  it  with  a  very 
small  one  beside  it. 

(3) 
Compare   Hermia   with    Helena    (Midsummer   Night^s 
Dream) .     [Other  characters  may  be  selected  by  the  teacher.] 

(4) 

Describe  a  very  tall  man  by  comparing  him  with  peo- 
ple and  objects  about  him. 


DESCKIPTION  188 

(5) 

Describe  a  pond  or  lake  as  it  appears  in  summer.  Com- 
pare this  with  a  second  description  of  its  appearance  in 
winter  when  thronged  with  skaters.  Are  these  descrip- 
tions circumstantial  or  impressional? 

(6) 

Trace  the  points  of  comparison  throughout  the  de- 
scriptions of  summer  and  winter  in  The  Vision  of  Sir 
Launfal. 

65  Unity  in  description.  In  narration  we  saw^  that 
unity  consisted,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  selection  of 
incidents  which  eventually  helped  to  develop  the  story. 
In  description,  likewise,  it  is  necessary  that  w^e  select 
from  the  whole  scene  only  those  details  which  contrib- 
ute to  the  final  effect  or  picture  that  we  wish  to  bring- 
clearly  before  the  reader.  We  should  choose  the  details 
which  present  the  most  striking  picture.  In  looking  at 
an  object  we  naturally  observe  first  such  properties  as 
its  color,  shape,  size,  etc.  These  give  a  general  outline 
of  the  thing  in  question.  Then  we  should  proceed  to 
pick  out  its  peculiarities,  its  distinctive  details.  In 
writing  a  description,  we  should  not  aim  to  give  all  the 
details,  but  only  such  as  are  absolutely  necessary  that 
the  reader  may  gain  a  clear  mental  image. 

Unity  there  is  in  nature  as  well  as  in  composition. 
Every  leaf,  every  tree  is  symmetrical,  every  landscape 
has  its  central  object  around  which  others  seem  to  be 
grouped.  Every  good  painting  or  group  of  statuary 
has  unity,  i.e.  there  is  some  central  object  or  some 
central  idea  that  is  to  be  brought  out. 


184  FIRST  YEAR   ENGLISH 

In  Scherrer's  picture.  Joan  of  Arc's  Victorious  Entry 
into  Orleans,  reproduced  on  the  opposite  page,  the 
central  figiu'c  is  the  mounted  figure  of  the  peasant  girl 
Joan,  now  the  conquering  leader  of  the  French  army: 
the  other  figures  in  the  picture  are  grouped  around  her 
in  whom  our  chief  interest  lies. 

Two  aids  there  are.  then.  f<>'  >(>curing  unity  in  a 
description. 

1  Select  a  definite  point  of  view. 

2  Group  the  details  about  some  central  object  or 
idea  that  j-ou  wish  to  bring  out  most  vividly. 

Avoid  violating  unity  by  observing  the  following 
cautions: 

1  Do  not  carelessly  shift  the  point  of  view. 

2  Do  not  wander  away  from  tlie  central  idea  of 
your  description. 

3  Do  not  begin  in  a  careless,  uncertain  manner. 
Have  your  picture  arranged  clearly  in  your  own  mind 
before  you  proceed. 

Notice  the  word  picture  in  the  following  tlescription  of 
Sir  Morning  Star,  from  Tennyson's  Gareth  and  Lynette: 

Then  at  his  call,  "0  daughters  of  the  Dawn, 
And  servants  of  the  Morning-Star,  approach. 
Arm  me,"  from  out  the  silken  curtain-folds 
Bare-footed  and  bare-headed  three  fair  girls 
In  gilt  and  rosy  raiment  came:  their  feet 
In  dewy  grasses  glisten'd;  and  their  hair 
All  over  glanced  with  dewdrop  or  with  gem 
Like  sparkles  in  the  stone  Avanturine. 
These  arm'd  him  in  blue  arms,  and  gave  a  shield 
Blue  also,  and  thereon  the  morning-star. 


DESCIUPTION 


185 


lyi 

■j 

S 

'  ^  '^i^e^^^H    9 

9HL  ^pMp '^v|bV 

^1 

IS 

JOAN  OF  arc's  victorious  ENTRY  INTO  ORLEANS         Scherver 


18»]  FinsT  YFAR   K\r,T.Tsn 

Autl  (iaretli  siloiit  ^:i/etl  upon  the  knigljf. 

Wlio  st 1  a  luoinent,  ore  his  Iku-so  whs  hrought, 

CUoryinp:;  and  in  the  stream  l>eneath  liirn.  shone 
Immingled  with  Heaven's  azure  uaverinKly. 
The  ^ay  pavihon  and  the  naked  feet. 
His  arms,  the  msy  niiment.  a?id  the  star. 

The  central  li^iurc  is  Sir  Moniini:  Star.  Allhoiij^h  the 
ilctails  ui\(Mi  dcscrilM'  the  "  llirrr  fair  irirls  "'  i|uil<'  as 
distinctly  as  .^ir  Mdrninj:;  Star,  yi-l  uc  an-,  after  all, 
conscious  that  he  is  the  main  hmnc,  the  ol)jecti\'('  point 
of  the  description. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
CJroup  the  followinfi  details   in   form  for  a  description. 
I)rin<;inp;  out   the  idea    of    rest    or    fireside   comfort,  ami 
write  a   wonl   picture  of  the  scene:  fireplace,  iron  kettle 
on  a  crane,  easy  chair,  ruir.  hoy.  L^raiidmother.  cat. 

(2) 

Write  the  word  picture  sugge.sted  to  you  Ky  the  follow- 
ino;:  a  mouse  hole,  a  cat  watchinir  the  hole,  a  mou.se 
crouched  in  terror  behind  the  cat.  unahle  to  reach  it.s 
home. 

What  is  the  central  object?     (live  rea.sons. 

(3) 
Describe  orally  to    your  class  some  picture  that  you 
have  seen  and  liked.     Be  careful  to  l)ring  out  the  group- 
ing of  the  details  in  the  picture. 

66  Coherence  in  description.  Coherence  demands 
a  clear  and  logical  arrangement  of  the  details  which 
make  up  a  de.scription.  The  reader  must  be  able  to 
follow  the  writer's  meaning  without  serious  effort. 


DESCRIPTION  187 

In  description  the  order  followed  should  be: 

1  From  near  to  distant  or  vice  versa. 

2  From    general   details  of    form,   shape,  etc.   to 
peculiarities  and  distinctive  items,  or  vice  versa. 

3  From   central    figure    to  minor  objects,  or  vice 
versa. 

4  From  right  to  left,  or  vice  versa. 

5  That  suggested  by  a  comparison  or  a  diagram. 
In  describing  an  individual  it  is  best  for  the  student 

to  begin  with  the  general  outline  or  impression  of  the 
face  or  figure  and  then  give  the  more  minute  details  of 
appearance,  proceeding  from  the  top  downward  unless 
there  is  some  particular  reason  why  some  other  order 
is  to  be  preferred.  This  rule  is,  however,  by  no  means 
invariable,  as  may  be  seen  from  the  following  descrip- 
tions. In  the  first  of  these  the  order  followed  is  that 
outlined  above;  in  the  second  the  more  minute  details 
are  given  first. 

(A) 
The  modern  Dutchman  is  quite  a  different  creature 
from  him  of  former  times;  he  in  everything  imitates  a 
Frenchman,  but  in  his  easy,  disengaged  air.  He  is  vastly 
ceremonious,  and  is,  perhaps,  exactly  what  a  Frenchman 
might  have  been  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  Such  are 
the  better  bred.  But  the  downright  Hollander  is  one  of 
the  oddest  figures  in  nature.  Upon  a  lank  head  of  hair 
he  wears  a  half-cocked  narrow  hat,  laced  with  black 
riband;  no  coat,  but  seven  waistcoats  and  nine  pair  of 
breeches,  so  that  his  hips  reach  up  almost  to  his  arm- 
pits. This  well-clothed  vegetable  is  now  fit  to  see  com- 
pany or  make  love.  But  what  a  pleasing  creature  is  the 
object  of  his  appetite!  wh}^  she  wears  a  large   fur  cap, 


188  FIKST   YEAR    ENGLISH 

with  a  deal  of  Flanders  lace;  aud  for  every  pair  of  breeches 
he  carries,  she  puts  on  two  petticoats. 

(B) 
"In  person,"  says  the  judge,  "Goldsmith  was  short; 
about  five  feet  five  or  six  inches;  strong,  but  not  heavy 
in  make;  rather  fair  in  complexion,  with  Ijrown  hair; 
such,  at  least,  as  could  be  distinguished  from  his  wig. 
His  features  were  plain,  but  not  repulsive  —  certainly 
not  so  when  lighted  up  by  conversation.  Ili.s  mannei-s 
were  simple,  natural,  and  perhaps  on  the  whole,  we  may 
say,  not  polished;  at  least  without  the  refinement  and 
good-breeding  which  the  exquisite  polish  of  his  composi- 
tions would  lead  us  to  exjxict.  He  was  always  cheerful 
and  animated,  often,  indeed,  boisterous  in  his  mirth; 
entered  with  spirit  into  convivial  society;  contributed 
largely  to  its  enjoyments  by  solidity  of  information,  and 
the  naivete  and  originality  of  his  character,  talked  often 
without  premeditation,  and  laughed  loudly  without 
restraint." 

Irving,  Oliver  Goldsmith. 

Another  aid  to  coherence  must  not  be  overlooked; 
this  is  the  use  of  transitional  words  and  phrases.  Such 
words  are  bridges  between  the  items,  and  they  help  to 
give  smoothness  and  clearness  in  passing  from  one  sen- 
tence to  another.  Place  words  have  already  been  men- 
tioned (p.  178) ;  they  are  one  variety  of  connecting  words 
and  phrases,  ^^^len,  for  instance,  a  sentence  is  introduced 
to  note  the  change  of  the  point  of  view  in  a  description, 
we  may  say  the  whole  sentence  is  transitional.  Then, 
too,  also,  etc.,  are  some  of  the  connecting  words  in 
frequent  use. 


DESCRIPTION  189 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
What  order  is  followed  in  the   first,  the  fourth  and 
the  fifth  specimens  of  description  given  at  the  beginning 
of  this  chapter? 

(2) 
Enumerate  orally  the   main   things  that  you   pass  on 
your  way  to  school. 

(3) 
Give  a  brief  oral  description  of  what  can  be  seen  from 
a  classroom  window  or  from  a  window  of  your  own  room 
at  home.     In  your  opening  sentence  state  your   point 
of  view;  then  tell  what  order  you  intend  to  follow. 

(4) 

Write  a  description  of  a  landscape  or  of  some  pic- 
ture that  you  have  seen,  proceeding  from  left  to  right  in 
giving  the  details. 

(5) 
Write  a  description  of   a  large  dog.     Begin  with  the 
general  and  proceed  to  specific  details. 

(6) 
Write  a  circumstantial  description  of  your  schoolroom. 
Take  a  definite  point  of  view  and  in  giving  details  pro- 
ceed from  near  to  distant. 

(7) 
Find  in  some  magazine  a  full  length  portrait  and  write 
a  description  of  the  person  portrayed.     Show  that  your 
description  follows  the  general  plan  for  the   description 
of  an  individual. 


1*J0  fIRST    YEAR    ENGLISH 

(8) 

Describe  the  picture  on  the  opposite  page,  proceed- 
ing from  the  central  figure  to  the  minor  or  less  impor- 
tant ones. 

The  "  Captive  Andromache  "  is  Sir  Frederifk  Ix-iphton's 
wonderful  conception  of  an  incident  related  in  Homer's  Iliad.' 
Andromache  was  the  wife  of  Hector,  "  who  fought  Ix'st  of  all  the 
Trojans  when  all  fought  for  Troy."  After  the  fall  of  Troy,  she 
was  taken  prisoner  to  Greece,  and  became  a  slave  at  the  Court 
of  one  of  the  Grecian  kinjjs.  The  incident  s<'Iected  l)y  the  artist 
represents  her  in  the  center  of  the  picture  overwhelmed  by 
grief,  mourning  her  fate,  while  the  other  women  perform  their 
daily  morning  errand  of  fillinp  their  water  vessels  at  the 
well. 

Describe  the  personal  appearance  of  Abraham  Lincoln 
according  to  the  [)icture  on  i>age  11)5. 

67  Condensation  and  choice  of  words.  Just  as  in 
narration  the  action  is  made  to  move  more  rapidly  and 
the  interest  of  the  reader  in  the  story  is  kept  uj)  by 
means  of  condensation,  so  in  description  the  picture 
takes  on  form  more  quickly  by  a  few  strong,  deft  touches 
skillfully  applied  than  by  many  hazy  indefinite  strokes. 

Condensation  is  effected  most  readily  by  use  of  pic- 
ture words  or  words  which  in  themselves  suggest  some- 
thing. Chief  among  these  is  the  adjective.  What  the 
verb  is  to  the  narration,  the  adjective  is  to  the  descrip- 
tion. The  writer  should  aim  to  select  distinctive  adjec- 
tives. We  speak  of  a  "  touching  scene,"  a  "  burning 
sky,"  a  "  whizzing  sound,"  etc.     Each  of  these  words 

»  Translation  of  Homer'.s  Iliad,  Books  VI,  XXII,  and  XXIV,  sug- 

gested  fnr  .supplementary  reading. 


192  riKST    YKAli    KNCI.ISII 

suggests  some  effect,  and  ^nvcs  in  itself  what   one  or 
more  sentences  would  he  r('(|uin'd  to  express  entirely. 
Notice  the  choice  of  adjectives  in  the  following: 

There  is  the  (/ifiantir  hody.  the  /hkji  face  seamed  with 
the  scars  of  disease,  the  hrowii  coat,  the  hhick  worsted 
stockings,  the  gray  wi*:;  with  the  smrrhcd  foretop,  the 
(lirli/  hands,  the  nails  hitten  and  pared  to  the  quick.  We 
see  the  eyes  and  mouth  niovinjr  with  conviihiir  twitches; 
we  see  the  heovi/  form  ntllinu;:  we  hear  it  j)u(fin^;  and  then 
comes  the  "Why,  sir!"  and  the  "What  then,  sir?"  and 
the  '*Xo,  sir!''  and  the  "  You  don't  see  your  way  through 
the  question,  sir!" 

Macaulay.  liDsirdl's  Poiiniil  i>j  Jnfins'tn. 

In  the  following  Ixitli  xcrhs  and  a<ljecti\('s  aiil  in 
de.seribing: 

A  large-headed,  dwarfish  individual  of  smoke-blearefl 
aspect,  shambles  forward,  opening  his  blue  lips,  for  there 
is  sense  in  him,  and  croaks.  "Alight,  then,  and  give  up 
your  arms." 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Describe  a  sun.set  using  distinctive  adjectives  to  ex- 
press color,  and  payins:  attention  to  grouping  details. 

Describe  the  j)ersonal  appearance  of  .some  character 
from  the  literature  you  have  read  this  year,  following 
carefully  the  order  for  the  description  of  an  individual 
and  paying  particular  attention  to  the  choice  of  words. 


DESCRIPTION  193 

(3) 
Write  a  description  of  some  scene  where  hurry  and 
activity  prevail,  paying  particular  attention  to  the  choice 
of  verbs  as  well  as  adjectives. 

(4) 
Write  a  brief  description  of  some  person  or  animal, 
choosing  only  those  details  that  are  especially  striking. 

68  Character  sketches.  In  real  life  we  become 
acquainted  with  people  from  what  they  do,  what  they 
say,  and  what  others  say  about  them.  In  a  story  we 
must  consider  these  same  things  in  determining  what 
kind  of  individual  we  are  reading  about.  An  estimate 
of  an  individual,  based  upon  those  points  or  upon  his 
feelings,  and  the  feelings  of  others  toward  him  forms  a 
character  sketch  or  characterization  of  that  person. 
The  description  of  the  personal  appearance  and  the 
peculiar  habits  of  the  individual  concerned,  as  well  as 
an  account  of  his  friends,  are  all  details  that  may  be 
introduced  into  a  character  sketch.  When  the  sketch, 
however,  inclines  mainly  toward  the  humorous  and  gro- 
tesque, a  caricature  is  likely  to  be  the  result.  Jerry 
Cruncher,  in  A   Tale  of  Two  Cities  belongs  to  this  type. 

In  a  character  sketch,  narration  and  description  are 
often  combined,  the  latter  being  used  in  enumerating 
the  traits  of  the  character,  the  former  in  relating  inci- 
dents to  justify  the  conclusion  drawn. 

Study  the  following  character  sketches.  Do  the  char- 
acters seem  real  or  fanciful?  Upon  what  do  you  base 
your  conclusion?  Does  any  one  of  the  selections  pre- 
sent a  caricature? 


194  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

Of  quite  another  stamp  was  the  then  accountant, 
John  Tipp.  He  neither  pretended  to  high  blood,  nor,  in 
good  truth,  cared  one  fig  about  the  matter.  He  "  thought 
an  accountant  the  greatest  character  in  the  world,  and 
himself  the  greatest  accountant  in  it."  Yet  John  was 
not  without  his  hobby.  The  fiddle  relieved  his  vacant 
hours.  He  sang,  certainly,  with  other  notes  than  to  the 
Orphean  lyre.  He  did,  indeed,  scream  and  scrape  most 
abominably.  His  fine  suite  of  official  rooms  in  Thread- 
needle  street,  which,  without  anything  very  substantial 
appended  to  them,  were  enough  to  enlarge  a  man's 
notions  of  himself  who  lived  in  them  (I  know  not  who  is 
the  occupier  of  them  now),  resounded  fortnightly  to  the 
notes  of  a  concert  of  "sweet  breasts"  as  our  ancestors 
would  have  called  them,  culled  from  clubrooms  and  or- 
chestras —  chorus-singers,  first  and  second  violoncellos, 
double  basses,  and  clarionets  —  who  ate  his  cold  mutton 
and  drank  his  punch  and  praised  his  ear.  He  sate  like 
Lord  Midas  among  them.  But  at  his  desk  Tipp  was 
quite  another  sort  of  creature.  Thence  all  ideas,  that 
were  purely  ornamental,  were  banished.  You  could  not 
speak  of  anything  romantic  without  rebuke.  Politics 
were  excluded.  A  newspaper  was  thought  too  refined 
and  abstracted.  The  whole  duty  of  man  consisted  in 
writing  off  dividend  warrants.  The  striking  of  the  annual 
balance  in  the  company's  books  (which,  perhaps,  differed 
from  the  balance  of  last  year  in  the  sum  of  £25  Is.  6d.) 
occupied  his  days  and  nights  for  a  month  previous.  .  .  . 
With  Tipp  form  was  everything  His  life  was  formal. 
His  actions  seemed  ruled  with  a  ruler.  His  pen  was  not 
less  erring  than  his  heart.  He  made  the  best  executor 
in  the  world;  he  was  plagued  with  incessant  executorships 
accordingly,  which  excited  his  spleen  and  soothed  his 
vanity  in  equal  ratios.     He  would  swear  (for  Tipp  swore) 


IJKSCKUTIO^ 


195 


ABKAII.VM    LINCOLN 


196  FIUST    YKAK    KNdl.ISU 

ill   tho  little  orpliuris  whose  i-ii;iits  lie  wmild  uiianl  willi  :i 

tentu-ity    like    tlie   .urasp   of   the   dyin^-    hatiil.    that    iMnn- 

meiKJed   liieii-  interests   to  his  |)rolectioii.      With  all   this 

tliei-e  was  al»oul  him  a  sort  ol"  timidity        (his  lew  eiieiiiie.s 

used  to  ,ui\'e  it  a  worse  name)  — a  suinethinf?  which  in 

reference  lo  the  dead,  we  will  place,  if  you  please,  a  little 

on  this  side  of  the  heroic.     Nature  certainly  had  been 

pleased  to  endow  John  Tipp  with  a  sufficient  measure  of 

the  principle  of  self-pre.servation.     There  is  a  cowardice 

which  we  do  not  desjjise,  because  it   has  nothinj;  ha.se  or 

treacherous  in  its  elements;  it  hetrays  it.self.  not  you:  it 

is  mere  temperament;  the  absence  of  the  romantic  and 

the  enterprisini;;  it  sees  a  lion  in  the  way,  and  will  not, 

with  I'ortinbras,  "greatly  find  (luarrcl  in  a  straw"  when 

some  supposed  honor  is  at  stake.     Tipp  never  mounted 

the  l)ox  of  a  stage  coach  in  his  life;  or  leaned  against  the 

rails  of  a  balcony;  or  walke(l  upon  the  ridge  of  a  i)arapet; 

or  looked  down  a  precipice;  or  let  off  a  gun;  or  went  upon 

a  water-party;  or  would  willingly  let  you  go,  if  he  could 

have  helped  it:  neither  was  it  recorded  of  him.  that  for 

lucre,    or    for    intimidation,    he    cxer    forsook    friend    or 

principle. 

Charlks  La.mb. 

Compare  the  following  sketch  of  ])i-.  .Johnson  with 
the  brief  description  of  his  personal  appearance  given 
on  page  192.  In  the  account  given  below,  his  habits, 
actions,  and  friends  form  the  l)asis  of  the  sketch. 

The  personality  of  Samuel  Johnson  is  wonderfully  dis- 
tinct; his  very  eccentricities  have  endeared  his  memory. 
It  is  the  peculiarities  that  we  first  recall:  how  he  kept 
stores  of  orange  peel  tucked  away  in  table  drawers;  how 
he  insisted  on  touching  every  post  which  he  passed  on 


DESCRIPTION  197 

the  street;  how  he  swallowed  cup  after  cup  of  scalding 
tea  in  gulps,  until  his  eyes  protruded  and  the  sweat  stood 
on  his  forehead;  how  he  tore  at  his  meat  like  a  famished 
animal;  how  he  growled  and  snarled  and  puffed  and 
grunted,  contradicting,  reviling,  overwhelming  with  a 
storm  of  rhetoric  all  who  differed  from  his  judgments. 
But  we  must  remember  also  the  courage  and  the  perse- 
verance with  which  he  struggled  up  the  long,  hard  way 
to  fame;  the  piety  and  purity  of  his  life;  the  kind  heart 
that  led  him  to  put  pennies  into  the  grimy  fists  of  sleep- 
ing waifs  at  night,  that  they  might  have  something  to 
buy  a  morsel  for  breakfast;  the  benevolence  that  turned 
his  lodgings  into  an  asylum,  where  he  harbored  a  blind 
old  woman,  a  negro  servant,  and  two  or  three  other 
queer  dependents  whose  claims  upon  his  charity  we  do 
not  understand.  He  was  respected  and  beloved  by  the 
distinguished  people  who  were  his  friends.  Burke  w^ept 
at  his  bedside,  and  parted  from  him  with  the  words, 
"My  dear  sir,  you  have  always  been  too  good  for  me." 
And  Fanny  Burney,  author  of  Evelina  and  other  fash- 
ionable novels,  stood  outside  his  door,  sobbing,  when  he 
died. 
W.  E.  SiMONDS,  A  Student's  History  of  English  Literature.^ 

In  this  byplace  of  nature  there  abode,  in  a  remote 
period  of  American  history,  that  is  to  say  some  thirty 
years  since,  a  worthy  wight  of  the  name  of  Ichabod 
Crane  who  sojourned, or  as  he  expressed  it  "tarried,"  in 
Sleepy  Hollow  for  the  purpose  of  instructing  the  children 
of  the  vicinity.  ...  He  was  tall,  but  exceedingly  lank, 
with  narrow  shoulders,  long  arms  and  legs,  hands  that 
dangled  a  mile  out  of  his  coat  sleeves,  feet  that  might 
have   served   for  shovels,   and    his    whole    frame   most 

>  By  permission  of  Messrs.  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Company. 


198  FIRST  YEAR  ENGLISH 

loosely  hung  together.  His  head  was  small  and  flat  at 
top,  with  huge  ears,  large  green  glassy  eyes,  and  a  long 
snipe  nose,  so  that  it  looked  like  a  weathercock  perched 
upon  his  spindle  neck  to  tell  which  way  the  wind  blew. 
To  see  him  striding  along  the  profile  of  a  hill  on  a  windy 
day,  with  his  clothes  bagging  and  fluttering  about  him, 
one  might  have  mistaken  him  for  the  genius  of  famine 
descending  upon  the  earth  or  some  scarecrow  eloped  from 
a  cornfield.  .  .  .  Truth  to  say,  he  was  a  conscientious 
man,  that  ever  bore  in  mind  the  golden  maxim,  "spare 
the  rod  and  spoil  the  child."  Ichabod  Crane's  scholars 
certainly  were  not  spoiled.  .  .  . 

When  school  hours  were  over,  he  was  even  the  com- 
panion and  playmate  of  the  larger  boys;  and  on  holiday 
afternoons  would  convoy  some  of  the  smaller  ones  home, 
who  happened  to  have  pretty  sisters,  or  good  housewives 
for  mothers,  noted  for  the  comforts  of  the  cupboard. 
Indeed  it  behooved  him  to  keep  on  good  terms  with  his 
pupils.  .  The  revenue  arising  from  his  school  was  small, 
and  would  have  been  scarcely  sufficient  to  furnish  him 
with  daily  bread,  for  he  was  a  huge  feeder,  and  though 
lank,  had  the  dilating  powers  of  an  anaconda;  but  to 
help  out  his  maintenance  he  was,  according  to  country 
custom  in  those  parts,  boarded  and  lodged  at  the  houses 
of  the  farmers  whose  children  he  instructed.  With  these 
he  lived  successively,  a  week  at  a  time,  thus  going  the 
rounds  of  the  neighborhood,  with  all  his  worldly  effects 
tied  up  in  a  cotton  handkerchief. 

That  all  this  might  not  be  too  onerous  on  the  purses 
of  his  rustic  patrons  ...  he  had  various  ways  of  ren- 
dering himself  both  useful  and  agreeable.  He  assisted 
the  farmers  occasionally  in  the  lighter  labors  of  their 
farms;  helped  to  make  hay;  mended  the  fences;  took  the 
horses  to  water;  drove  the  cows  from  pasture;  and  cut 


DESCRIPTION  199 

wood  for  the  winter  fire.  He  laid  aside,  too,  all  the 
dominant  dignity  and  absolute  sway,  with  which  he 
lorded  it  in  his  little  empire,  the  school,  and  became 
wonderfully  gentle  and  ingratiating.  He  found  favor  in 
the  eyes  of  the  mothers  by  petting  the  children,  particu- 
larly the  youngest;  and  like  the  lion  bold,  which  whilom 
so  magnanimously  the  lamb  did  hold,  he  would  sit  with 
a  child  on  one  knee,  and  rock  a  cradle  with  his  foot  for 
whole  hours  together. 

In  addition  to  his  other  vocations,  he  was  the  singing 
master  of  the  neighborhood,  and  picked  up  many  bright 
shillings  by  instructing  the  young  folks  in  psalmody.  It 
was  a  matter  of  no  little  vanity  to  him  on  Sundays,  to 
take  his  station  in  front  of  the  church  gallery,  with  a 
band  of  chosen  singers;  where,  in  his  own  mind,  he  com- 
pletely carried  away  the  palm  from  the  parson.  .  .  . 

Our  man  of  letters,  too,  was  peculiarly  happy  in  the 
smiles  of  all  the  country  damsels.  How  he  would  figure 
among  them  in  the  churchyard  between  services  on  Sun- 
days! gp.thering  grapes  for  them  from  the  wild  vines  that 
overrun  the  surrounding  trees;  or  sauntering  with  a  whole 
bevy  of  them  along  the  banks  of  the  adjacent  mill  pond; 
while  the  more  bashful  country  bumpkins  hung  sheep- 
ishly back,  envying  his  superior  elegance  and  address.  .  .  . 

He  was,  in  fact^  an  odd  mixture  of  small  shrewdness 
and  simple  credulity.  His  appetite  for  the  marvelous 
and  his  powers  of  digesting  it,  were  equally  extraordi- 
nary; and  both  had  been  increased  by  his  residence  in 
this  spellbound  region.  No  tale  was  too  gross  or  mon- 
strous for  his  capacious  swallow.  It  was  often  his  de- 
light, after  his  school  was  dismissed  in  the  afternoon,  to 
stretch  himself  on  the  rich  bed  of  clover,  bordering  the 
little  brook  that  whimpered  by  his  schoolhouse,  and 
there  con  over  old  Mather's  direful  tales  until  the  gather- 


200  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

ing  dusk  of  evening  made  the  printed  page  a  mere  mist 
before  his  eyes.  Then,  as  he  wended  his  way  by  swamp 
and  stream  and  awful  woodland,  to  the  farmhouse  where 
he  happened  to  be  quartered,  every  sound  of  nature,  at 
that  witching  hour,  fluttered  his  imagination;  the  moan 
of  the  whip-poor-will  from  the  hillside;  the  boding  cry  of 
the  tree  toad,  that  harbinger  of  storm;  the  dreary  hooting 
of  the  screech  owl;  or  the  sudden  rustling  in  the  thicket, 
of  birds  frightened  from  their  roost.  The  fireflies,  too, 
which  sparkled  most  vividly  in  the  darkest  places,  now 
and  then  startled  him,  as  one  of  uncommon  brightness 
would  stream  across  his  path;  and  if,  by  chance,  a  huge 
blockhead  of  a  beetle  came  winging  his  blundering  flight 
against  him,  the  poor  varlet  was  ready  to  give  up  the 
ghost,  with  the  idea  that  he  was  struck  with  a  witch's 
token.  His  only  resource  on  such  occasions,  either  to 
drown  thought  or  to  drive  away  evil  spirits,  was  to  sing 
psalni  tunes;  —  and  the  good  people  of  Sleepy  Hollow,  as 
they  sat  by  their  doors  of  an  evening,  were  often  filled 
with  awe,  at  hearing  his  nasal  melody,  "in  linked  sweet- 
ness long  drawn  out,"  floating  from  the  distant  hill,  or 
along  the  dusky  road. 

Irving,  The  Legend  of  Sleepy  Hollow. 

Observe  that  in  the  above  selection  one  paragraph  is 
given  to  each  particular  phase  of  the  sketch.  The  stu- 
dent should  follow  this  in  long  character  sketches, 
devoting  a  paragraph  to  each  topic  taken  up  or  each 
incident  told  in  support  of  the  characterization.  In 
short  personal  descriptions  one  paragi'aph  is  usually 
sufficient. 


DESCRIPTION  201 

EXERCISE 

(1) 
Write  a  character  sketch  of  any  one  of  the  following 
with  which  you  are  familiar,  supporting  your  estimate  by 
reference  to  incidents  of  the  story:  Isabelle  of  Croye 
(Quentin  Durward),  Rosalind  (As  You  Like  It),  Rebecca 
(Ivanhoe) .  /2) 

Characterize  Billy  Bones  (Treasure  Island),  describing 
his  personal  appearance  and  his  pecuUar  habits. 

(3) 
What  trait  is  most  prominent  in  each  of  the  following 
characters  ?  Give  reasons  for  your  decision  —  Miles 
Standish,  Jaques  (As  You  Like  It),  Isaac  of  York  (Ivan- 
hoe), Louis  XI  (Quentin  Durward),  John  Silver  (Treasure 
Island),  Bottom  (Midsummer  Night's  Dream). 

(4) 
Characters  often  change  or  develop  during  the  progress 
of  the   story.     What   change   is   brought   about   in   Sir 
Launfal  ?  the  Ancient  Mariner  ? 

(5) 
Write  a  characterization  of  one  of  the  following  by 
telhng  how  other  characters  feel  toward  him.     Appius 
Claudius  (Virginia),  Oliver  le  Dain  (Quentin  Durward), 
Squire  Trelawney  (Treasure  Island),  Horatius. 

(6) 
Describe  some  person  of  your  acquaintance  by  telling 
about  his  or  her  chief  aim  in  life. 

(7) 
Describe  some  person  who  might  be  called  "a  pillar 
of  the  church." 


202  FIRST   YEAR   ENGLISH 

Describe  a  character  in  some  book  that  you  have  read 
and  Hked  by  telhng  how  this  person  feels  towards  other 
characters  in  the  story. 

(9) 
Write   a   character  sketch   of  EvangeHne,   describing 
her  personal  appearance  and  telling  her  thoughts.     [For 
students  not  familiar  with  Evangeline  some  other  char- 
acter should  be  substituted.] 

(10) 
Write  a  caricature  or  humorous  sketch  by  pointing  out 
the  laughable  peculiarities  of  some  person  with  whom 
you  are  acquainted  or  about  whom  you  have  read. 

(11) 

Characterize  one  of  the  following  by  telling  what  he 

says  and  what  he  does:  Wamba  (Ivanhoe),  Tristan,  the 

Provost  {Quentin  Durward),  Captain  Smollett  (Treasure 

Island) . 

(12) 

Write  a  character  sketch  of  one  or  more  of  the  follow- 
ing, supporting  your  characterization  by  references  to  the 
story:  Hayraddin  Maugrabin  {Quentin  Durward),  Jim 
Hawkins  (Treasure  Island),  Athelstane  (Ivanhoe),  Penel- 
ope (The  Odyssey),  Paris  (The  Iliad). 

(13) 
Write   a   character  sketch   of   some   person   of   your 
acquaintance   by   enlarging   upon   one   particular   trait. 
Narrate  an  incident  to  support  your  characterization. 

(14) 
Describe  your  ideal  man  or  woman. 


DESCRIPTION  203 

MISCELLANEOUS  EXERCISES  IN  DESCRIPTION 

(1) 
Find  in  the  literature  that  you  have  read  this  year 
(a)  five  specimens  of  circumstantial  description;  (6)  five 
of  impressional  description. 

(2) 
Indicate  the  point  of  view  in  each  of  the  descriptions 
selected  above.     Is  the  point  of  view  changed  in  any 
one  of  these?     If  so,  is  this  change  plainly  indicated? 

(3) 
Find  from  the  required  or  the  supplementary  reading 
two  descriptions  written  from  a  moving  or  traveler's  point 
of  view. 

(4) 
What  effect  upon  the  choice  of  details  has  a  distant 
viewpoint?      In  general,  which  should  be  given  first  — 
general  outline  or  specific  details? 

(5) 

Find  from  your  reading  three  specimens  of  description 
in  which  comparison  or  contrast  is  used. 

(6) 
Select  some  picture  or  group  of  statuary  and  show 
that  it  has  unity. 

(7) 

Find  from  your  reading  three  descriptions  in  each  of 
which  a  definite  arrangement  of  the  details  is  manifest. 

(8) 
From  some  description  that  seems  to  you  to  be  espe- 
cially good,  select  /ive  distinctive  adjectives. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

SYNONYMS   AND   HOMONYMS 

Synonyms  are  words  of  like  significance  in  tlie  main,  but 
with  a  certain  milikeness  as  well.    Trench. 

69  Synonyms.  Synonyms  are  words  which  have 
the  same  or  nearly  the  same  meaning.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  very  few  words  have  exactly  the  same  signifi- 
cance. Many  seem  to  us  aUke,  because  in  a  given 
instance  they  may  be  used  interchangeably.  For 
example,  one  may  say  ''The  book  absorbed  his  at- 
tention," or  ''The  book  engaged  his  attention,"  and 
intend  the  same  meaning  in  either  case.  But  this  is 
only  one  of  many  uses  of  absorb  and  engage.  When 
one  tries  to  use  them  synonymously^  in  other  con- 
nections, the  real  difference  between  them  is  imme- 
diately apparent.  For  instance,  one  might  say  "He 
absorbed  knowledge,"  but  never  "He  engaged  knowl- 
edge"; "He  engaged  a  tutor,"  but  never  "He  ab- 
sorbed a  tutor." 

The  exact  uses  of  words  as  well  as  the  real  differ- 
ences between  them  are  best  seen  by  looking  at  their 
derivation.  For  instance,  absorb  comes  from  the 
Latin  "absOrbere,"  meaning  to  "suck  in,"  while  en- 
gage comes  from  the  French  "engager,"  to  "pledge." 
Keeping  this  in  mind,  one  has  no  difficulty  in  using 
them  and  distinguishing  between  them  correctly. 

One  of  the  marks  of  the  good  wl'iter  is  the  nicety 

204 


SYNONYMS  AND  HOMONYMS         205 

with  which  he  uses  words.  In  the  best  writings,  it 
is  impossible  to  substitute  one  synonym  for  another 
without  destroying  the  meaning.  The  author  used 
a  particular  word  because  it,  and  it  alone,  exactly 
expressed  his  thought. 

EXERCISE 

(1) 

avoid        evade        shun        escape        elude 
Substitute  in  turn  each  of  the  other  words  in  the  above 
list  for  the   underlined   words   in   following   quotations. 
What  change  takes  place  in  the  meaning  of  the  sentence 
in  each  case  ?    Why  ? 

"  Often  I  have  heard  the  house  shaking  with  '  Yo  ho  ho  and  a 
bottle  of  rum/  all  the  neighbors  joining  in  for  dear  life,  and 
each  singing  louder  than  the  other  to  avoid  remark."  Steven- 
son.    Treasure  Island. 

"  It  could  not  escape  even  Cedric's  reluctant  observation,  that 
his  project  was  now  completely  at  an  end."     Scott.    Ivankoe. 

(2) 
"With  patient  courage,   Rebecca  again  took  post  at  the 
lattice."    Scott.    Ivanhoe. 

Did  Rebecca  show  fortitude,  bravery,  valor,  boldness, 
intrepidity  or  dauntlessness  ?  Do  any  of  these  words 
describe  her  action  so  well  as  the  term  Scott  has  used  ? 
Support  your  answer. 

(3) 

fear  fright  panic  horror 

dread  alarm  terror  dismay 

consternation 

Why  did  the  authors  of  the  following  quotations  use 

the  underlined  words  instead  of  one  of  the  other  words 


206  FIRST    YEAR    ENCLISH 

in  the  above  list.  Show  what  change  the  use  of  each  of 
the  other  words  would  have  made  in  the  meaning  of  the 
sentences. 

"  Fear  at  my  heart,  as  at  a  cup, 

My  life  blood  seemed  to  sip!"    Coleridge.    Ancient  Mariner. 
"  Like  one  that  on  a  lonesome  road, 

Doth  walk  in  fear  and  dread."     Ancient  Mariner. 
"  A  fresh  alarm  brought  mc  to  a  standstill."     Treasure  Island. 
"  And  the  silken,  sud,  uncertain  rustling  of  each  purple  curtain 

Thrilled  me  —  filled  me  with  fantastic  terrors  never  felt  before." 

PoE.     The  Raven. 

(4) 
"  And  a  deep  pity  entered  Rustum's  soul  as  he  beheld  him 
coming."     Arnold.     Sohrab  and  Rustum. 

"  Sure  my  kind  saint  took  pity  on  me." 

Coleridge.     Ancient  Mariner. 
"  He  must  contrive  to  break  a  limb  or  two,  for  on  no  slighter 
condition  will  his  fall  excite  anything  Uke  serious  sympathy." 
Scott.    Quentin  Durward. 

Are  pity  and  sympathy  interchangeable  words  ?  Con- 
firm j'-our  answer  by  reference  to  the  above  quotations. 
Would  the  meaning  have  been  the  same  if  the  word 
compassion  had  been  used  instead  of  pity  or  sympathy  ? 

(5) 
Make  sentences,  using  the  words  clanger,  peril,  jeopardy, 
hazard,  risk,  venture,  so  as  to  show  the  differences  between 
them.  Which  of  these  words  might  be  substituted  in- 
stead of  the  underlined  words  in  the  following  sentences  ? 
Would  the  change  of  a  word  alter  the  meaning  ? 

"  Unheeding  the  danger  he  rode  up  to  the  tremendous  ani- 
mal."    Scott.    Quentin  Durward. 

"  The  honor  of  a  noble  lady  is  in  peril."     Scott.     Ivanhoc. 


SYNONYMS   AND   HOMONYMS 


207 


(6) 

"This   grini,   ungainly,  ghastly,   gaunt   and   ominous   bird   of 
yore."     Poe.     The  Raven. 

Give  the  exact  meaning  of  ea(;h  adjective  in  this  Hne. 
Are  any  two  synonymous  ? 

70  Homonyms.  Homonyms  are  words  different 
in  origin  and  meaning,  which  are  pronounced  alike 
and  sometimes  spelled  in  the  same  way. 


EXERCISE 

Make  sentences,  using  each  of  the  following  words  so  as 
to  show  their  exact  meaning. 


ante 

capital 

mall 

right 

anti 

capitol 

maul 

rite 
wriglit 

ascent 

cession 

mantel 

write 

assent 

session 

mantle 

serge 

auger 

cite 

marshal 

surge 

augur 

site 

martial 

sight 

slight 

born 

meat 

sleight 

borne 

complement 

meet 

bourn 

compliment 

mete 

stationary 
stationery 

cannon 

draft 

missal 

canon 

draught 

missile 

vail 
vale 

canvas 

maize 

principal 

veil 

canvass 

maze 

principle  ■ 

INDEX 


Abbreviations,  70;  used  in  letter 
writing,  71;  used  in  correcting 
compositions,  30. 

Action,  narration  based  upon, 
134;  thread  of,  141. 

Address  of  letters,  88. 

Adjective  clauses,  124. 

Adjective  phrases,  128. 

Adverbial  clauses,  124. 

Adverbial  phrases,  127. 

Advertisements,  108, 

Anecdotes,  136. 

Apostrophe,  81. 

Arrangement  of  details  in  de- 
scription, 178,  184. 

Beginning  and  end  of  story,  161. 
Brackets,  81. 

Calling  cards,  iise  of,  in  invita^ 
tions,  115. 

Capitalization,  use  of,  35,  63 ; 
rules  for,  64. 

Character  sketches,  193. 

Characters  in  narration,  154. 

Choice  of  woi"ds,  in  description, 
190;  in  narration,  148. 

Circumstantial  description,  169. 

Classification  of  sentences,  ac- 
cording to  form,  116  ;  accord- 
ing to  use,  120. 

Clause,  definition  of,  117  ;  prin- 
cipal or  independent,  117; 
subordinate,  117  ;  dependent, 
128;  noun,   123;   substantive. 


Clause.  —  Continued. 

123 ;    adjective,   124 ;    adverb. 

124. 
Climax,  136,  139. 
Coherence,  in  sentences,  40 ;  in 

narration,  160  ;  in  description, 

186. 
Colon,  rules  for,  76. 
Comma,  rules  for,  72. 
Comparison,  use  of,  in  descrip- 
tion, 181. 
Complex  sentence,  38. 
Composition,    oral,    9;    written, 

27. 
Compound  sentence,  38. 
Concluding  paragi-aph,  164. 
Concluding  sentences,  50. 
Conclusion    in    letters,    89 ;    in 

narration,  162. 
Connectives,  39. 
Contrast,  use  of,  in  description, 

181. 
Conversation,  10. 

Dangling  participle,  129. 

Dash,  rules  for,  80. 

Debating,  18. 

Declarative  sentence,  120. 

Dependent  clauses,  123. 

Description,  definition  of,  169; 
kinds  of,  169 ;  impressional, 
169 ;  circumstantial,  169 ; 
point  of  view  in,  173  ;  details 
in,    178 ;  use    of    diagram  in, 


208 


INDEX 


209 


Description.  —  Continued. 

178 ;  comparison  and  con- 
trast in,  181  ;  unity  in,  183 ; 
coherence  in,  186  ;  choice  of 
words  in,  190 ;  condensation, 
190. 

Diagram,  use  of,  in  description, 
178. 

Dialogue,  143. 

Elements  of  narration,  150. 
Enunciation,  10. 
Exclamation  point,  rules  for,  78. 
Extempore  speaking,  IS. 

Form  of  manuscript,  28,  29. 

Heading  of  lettere,  86. 
Homonyms,  207. 
Hyphen,  rules  for,  82. 

Imperative  sentence,  121. 
Impressional  description,  169. 
Indirect  question,  123. 
Infinitive  phrase,  129. 
Interrogation  point,  rules  for,  77. 
Interrogative  sentence,  121. 
Introduction  in  narration,  161. 
Introductory  paragraph,  164. 
Introductory  sentences,  45. 

Letters,  kinds  of,  86;  parts  of, 
86;  heading  of,  86;  address 
and  salutation,  88;  body  of, 
88;  conclusion  of,  89;  super- 
scription, 90;  friendly,  91; 
business,    99. 

Manuscript,  form  of,  28,  29. 
Memorizing,  selections  for,  16. 
Moment  of  suspense,  136,  193. 


Narration,  definition  of,  134 ; 
choice  of  words  in,  148 ;  ele- 
ments of,  150;  plot  in,  160 ; 
unity  in,  159;  coherence  in, 
160;  introduction,  161,  164; 
conclusion,  162,  164. 

Narrative,  personal,  136. 

Note  taking,  54.  • 

Notes,  informal,  97. 

Noun  clauses,  123. 

Noun  phrases,  129. 

Oral  composition,  9. 
Oral  reproduction,  21. 
Outlines,  55. 

Paragraph,  21,  53,  164,  200. 

Parentheses,  81. 

Participial  phrases,  128. 

Participle,  dangling,  129. 

Period,  rules  for,  69. 

Personal  narrative,  135. 

Phrases,  definition  of,  126  ;  ad- 
jective, 127;  adverbial,  127 ; 
prepositional,  127;  participial, 
128;  infinitive,  129  ;  noun, 
129. 

Pictures  in  stories,  157. 

Place  words.  178. 

Plot,  150. 

Point  of  view,  173. 

Postal  cards,  106. 

Pi'epositional  phrase,  127. 

Principal  or  independent  clauses, 
117. 

Pronunciation,  10. 

Punctuation,  use  of,  35,  63;  rules 
for,  69-82. 

Purpose,  156. 

Quotation  marks,  78. 


210 


INDEX 


Recitation,  13. 

Salutation  in  letters,  88. 

Semicolon,  rules  for,  75. 

Sentence  structure,  variety  in,  38. 

Sentences,  simple,  38,  116;  com- 
plex, 38,  118;  compound,  38, 
119;  use  of  short  and  long, 
36;  introductory,  46;  conclud- 
ing, 50;  definition  of,  116; 
classification  of,  according  to 
form,  116;  members  of,  117  ; 
classification  of,  according  to 
use,  120;  declarative,  120;  ex- 
clamatory, 121;  imperative, 
121;   interrogative,  121. 

Setting  of  narration,  155. 

Simple  sentence,  38. 


Social  forms,  111. 
Stories  in  pictures,  157. 
Subordinate  clauses,  117. 
Substantive  clauses,  123. 
Suggestive  description,  171. 
Superscription  of  letters,  90. 
Suspense,  moment  of,  136,  139. 
Synonyms,  204. 

Telegrams,  106. 
Thread  of  action,  141. 
Topical  outlines,  55. 

Unity,  in  description,  183;  in 
narration,  159;  in  sentence, 
39. 

Variety  in  .sontence  structure,  3&. 


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